


Soul Bound

by hoomanbean123



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Angels & Demons, Angel Krista Lenz | Historia Reiss, Angel Ymir, Angel/Human Relationships, Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Demon Erwin Smith, Demon Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin), Developing Friendships, Developing Relationship, Eren Yeager is a Little Shit, Explicit Language, Human Eren Yeager, Multi, Sadistic Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-15
Updated: 2020-07-12
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:33:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 24,173
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24726781
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hoomanbean123/pseuds/hoomanbean123
Summary: After a terrible incident in Eren Jaeger's childhood leaves two would-be kidnappers dead at his hands, Eren’s soul is immutably bound to one of Hell’s most notorious, sadistic demons--Levi. Unbeknownst to Eren, he lives his life normally for 18 years until Levi comes around to cash in on the unfortunate connection and force Eren to commit demonic acts in his name. Eren, deciding that he will not abide by the will of a demon, makes it his mission to track down just who would bind his soul to a cruel demon, break free of his connection with Levi, and maybe even change the irrefutably evil demon for the better in the process.
Relationships: Bertolt Hoover/Annie Leonhart, Krista Lenz | Historia Reiss/Ymir, Levi/Eren Yeager, Mikasa Ackerman/Reiner Braun, Sasha Blouse/Connie Springer
Comments: 18
Kudos: 54





	1. Author's Notes

Hello all! I hope you are all doing well wherever you are in the world. This is officially my first fanfic, and I am both extremely excited and extremely nervous to post it. I’ve been feeling kind of stressed out with some recent changes in my life, and I needed a creative outlet to let off some steam and be able to express myself. At the behest of my lovely best friend and beta reader, I decided to start writing this work. Since this is my first fic, constructive criticism is much welcomed. Also, if you ever have any questions, feel free to post them in the comments, and I’ll do my best to answer them. 

With that being said, here is a little info on the fic. It’s not too important, but I figured I’d post in anyway. Basically, I do not have any of this story really planned out beyond a few chapters that currently reside in my head. I haven’t decided how dark I want to make the story, if it will end happy or sad, or what types of relationships I want to include. Because of this, tags are subject to change. So far, I’m just seeing where my ideas take me, and the story and pairings will naturally develop around that. I will try and make sure to post any trigger warnings at the beginning of chapters so ya’ll know what you’re getting into. I’m also trying to build the world as best I can in the chapters since you’re pretty much not supposed to understand anything that’s going on going into the story, but if you’re still confused, just let me know. I’m going to try and update at least once a week, but it all really depends on my own schedule and the schedule of my beta reader. I’m hoping to keep it as consistent as possible though. 

Without further ado, here’s Soul Bound...


	2. Prologue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first time Levi sees Eren...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger Warnings: blood, implied violence

Blasting sirens and blazing lights adorned by police and emergency vehicles that screeched to a halt in front of a small, well kept house abruptly interrupted the quiet stillness of the cool October night. All around, lights began to illuminate windows as neighbors suddenly awoken by the shrieking noise switched on lamps and peeked out behind closed curtains. The flashing vehicles and heavily armed officers that jumped out of them were not a common sight in this neighborhood filled with well-manicured lawns and white picket fences that enclosed what one could only describe as quirkily painted homes of pastel greens, and pinks, and even a lavender here and there. 

Skulking in the shadows a few homes down was a man, short in stature and clad in black from head to toe. Everything adorning his body--from his meticulously polished shoes, to his exorbitant looking blazer, to even his cropped hair and bottomless eyes--was black. The only thing that shined off of his body and provided any sort of contrast to his dark appearance was his pale skin that seemed to eerily glow in the moonlight. However, the dark man appeared to blend naturally into the shadows. Not even his striking pale skin seemed to stand out as he lurked in the darkness. Not that this mattered, of course. No one was paying him any attention, and even if they tried, they wouldn’t be able to see him anyways. 

The mystery man observed the scene a few houses down with heavily-lidded eyes and a bored sort of half-interest for a while. He watched as police officers swarmed onto the scene and burst into the seemingly peaceful little house as yellow caution tape was put up to block off the perimeter. By this time, a few brave neighbors took to the street to gather as close as possible to the scene, while the rest--after their abrupt arousal from slumber--were now wide awake and staring unabashedly from windows. In that moment, the dark man felt a little breeze tousle his hair from behind, and the sudden feeling of an opposing figure standing directly behind him filled his senses. He glanced briefly behind himself as the mystery man stepped up beside him and gave a curt nod. The raven haired man returned the nod with a slightly exasperated expression lining his features as he dragged his hand through his hair to pull it back into place. He did not appreciate his hair being messed up, but he let it slide. 

The man now at his side was a tall, imposing figure. He stood about a foot higher than the raven himself, and his light blond hair and shining azure eyes contrasted the raven’s dark ones. He was, however, similarly clothed in all black from head to foot. After a few minutes observing the scene for himself, the light-haired man began to speak.

“This is a little bit of a problem, don’t you think?” 

The raven remained silent, staring blankly ahead. He made no acknowledgement that he had heard the tall man’s comment, but that didn’t deter his companion from continuing.  
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen this happen before. Heard about it, of course. But I’ve never seen it. Have you thought at all about what you’re going to do? You know you can’t just avoid this.” 

Finally, after letting out an exasperated sigh, the dark haired man speaks. 

“Don’t you think I fucking know that already? I’m here, aren’t I?” he spits out, not sparing his companion one bit from the disdain and annoyance laced in his voice. Just as the dark eyed man finishes speaking, a young boy with unkempt, chocolate-brown hair and piercing emerald eyes walks out of the little house with a blanket draped over his tiny shoulders as officers swarm at his sides. The blanket, although too large for the boy’s small frame, does nothing to hide the huge splotches of blood that stain his shirt and crust his cheeks. Soon after, a young girl with pitch black hair and striking, angular features follows behind. She is also covered in blood, but far less and far better hidden by the large red scarf that adorns her tiny neck. Somehow, the appearance of the two children only serves to annoy the raven-haired man even more as his eyes now observe the scene with rapt attention. 

“So, what are you going to do? The boy was on the list, slated to die, and yet here he is. I wonder if there has been some sort of mistake in filing,” the tall man muses. 

“Of course there wasn’t some fucking mistake. The Devil doesn’t make mistakes. Someone’s intervened here, and I swear to Hell if it was some twittering angel fuck, I’ll hunt them down and dissect them where they stand,” the raven spits out venemously. 

Beside him, the light-haired man chuckles heartily. “If it was an angel, then it would have to be a pretty sadistic one to save someone on the to-die list. You do realize that boy’s soul is now immutably bound to you. You were supposed to be the one who reaped his soul after death, but since he’s still alive, now you're stuck with him until…” 

“Yes, yes until I either release him or off him. Though considering the success rate of releasing human souls that are bound to demons, I’d say the brat’s better off dead. I wonder what sadistic fuck came up with that system?” 

“The one who came up with all of the systems--God, of course. So is that what you’re going to do? Try to release him?” 

“I don’t fucking know,” the raven sighs exacerbatedly. “I haven’t gotten that far yet.” 

“You know, it could be nice to have a human around to do some of your dirty work for you. It’s not like he could really refuse your orders...well, I guess he could, it just wouldn't be very pleasant for him,” the tall man says with a sadistic grin spreading across his chiseled face. 

“What am I supposed to do with a baby, Erwin? Have him tempt a politician to take a bribe with Girl Scout cookies?” 

“First of all, Levi, he’s not a baby. I’d wager he’s at least six, so I’d say toddler bordering on little kid according to humans. Second of all, it’s not like he’ll stay little forever. Humans do have a tendency to grow and age, so one day he’ll be the perfect little companion going around and tempting politicians, assisting bank robbers, kicking puppies, or whatever the hell you ask him to do. This could really be a blessing in disguise for you.” 

“Heh a blessing” the raven--Levi--says rolling his eyes. “Whatever, I’m not going to worry about this tonight. I’m beat.” And with a final nod to his companion, and one last disdainful glance towards the young boy, the dark man steps back and disappears completely into the shadows.  
Standing where Levi stood, Erwin watches the scene in front of him a little while longer. He watches as the two young children are put into a police car and soon raced off down the road and out of sight. He muses at the situation his friend has now found himself in. It’s uncommon, to say the least, but not unheard of. While not many human souls bound to demons lasted very long--the humans themselves tended to find the relationship unbearable to put it lightly and would often beg to be released no matter the outcome--Erwin figured this could be an interesting development for his friend. He pondered the situation for a little while longer before he too stepped into the shadows and disappeared completely. Just as he was about to go, a final thought popped into his head: I wonder who would want the soul of a little boy bound to one of the more sadistic demons known to hell? This thought made him chuckle lightly as he was whisked away into the night that was once again filling with silence.


	3. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren has lived a normal life for 18 years until one day...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger Warnings: references to prostitution, people suffering, violent death

Many years after the unfortunate incident that occurred in the little house on the long street that was lined with pastel colored residences and well manicured lawns, the young boy, now a grown man, stood in front of a large coffee shop/bookstore hybrid aptly named in bold letters STICKS AND SCONES and books and stuff. The quirky title and quirky lettering fit the coffee shoppe, and the owner herself, quite well. Eren loved working here, even if it meant he had to put on his best ‘customer service’ and ‘yes, I can deal with your shit’ face everyday. A great appreciator of coffee and books himself, Eren loved working in the peaceful, low-key environment that attracted readers, writers, dreamers and the like while he waited for his own writing career to take off. At the moment, he was a freelance journalist for just about anyone who would take him, but he one day hoped to be a reporter for the largest, most prestigious paper in the city, maybe even the country--the Shiganshina Times. Until that day happened, Eren made a great deal of his income working in the eccentric coffee shop. 

Taking one final deep breath before going in, Eren entered the building stepping right into the barely controlled chaos that often filled Sticks and Scones early in the morning as people clad in business attire and briefcases strolled in and out for their first dose of much needed caffeine for the day. Eren speedily hopped behind the counter and tied a clover green apron around his waist. He quickly fell in line with his two other co-workers who had already begun their shift an hour earlier, taking over coffee duties from his brunette colleague Sasha who managed to pour beverages for customers and eat as many muffins out of the display case as she had already sold for the day at the same time. His other colleague Connie, a short twenty-something with a bald head and large eyes stepped next to him working on the tea drinks. Although the boy sometimes took on the appearance of an overly stressed out dragonfly, he was extremely intelligent and snarky, a combination that Eren greatly enjoyed being around. Together with Sasha’s bright, silly personality, the trio made the best combination to tackle the weary workers that came in as zombies and left rejuvenated and ready to tackle the day's challenges. 

At around eight a.m., the hectic buzz that filled the establishment started to dull as the early morning crowd made their way to work while the lucky individuals who didn’t have to get up at the crack of dawn wouldn’t be strolling in for another half hour or so. Eren took this time to take a breather, make himself a latte, and grab a muffin from the display case. Over in the bookshop area of the cafe, he spotted his boss and owner of the shop, Hange Zoe, restocking the book shelves. She caught his glance and waved at him, beckoning him over. Eren hopped across the counter and strolled over to greet his boss. 

“Hello, Eren! How are you doing on this fine Monday morning?” Hange greeted him a little overenthusiastically for the first day of the week as she jumped up from restocking the bottom shelves and stepped a little too closely into his personal space. Eren didn’t mind, though. He enjoyed his unorthodox, overeager boss. She breathed life and personality into her little business, and Eren guessed that was a key factor in its initial success. 

“I’m doing fine, Hange. Just a little tired. How about you?” he inquires politely. 

“I’m doing just peachy,” she replies genuinely. “You’re tired, though? You weren’t out partying all weekend, were you?” she asks playfully and goes back to restocking the shelves while listening to his response. 

“Nope. Just stayed up late writing an article on the fall festival coming up in Trost Park for a little local magazine. Apparently I didn’t make it sound interesting enough on my first go, so I had to send in a second draft. Besides, you know I’m pretty boring at parties. I don’t dance, and I can barely hold my alcohol.” 

“That is exactly what makes you so fun to be around at parties! It doesn’t take much to get you hammered, and after you are, you’re hilarious to be around,” she retorts mischievously, wiggling her eyebrows at him. 

Eren just rolls his eyes and strides back over to the counter with a small wave of his hand to Hange after he hears the little jingle of the bell on the door signaling a new customer. The rest of his workday passes uneventfully, and he’s out of Sticks and Scones by three--a benefit of starting his workday at seven in the morning. Once outside, he strolls across the street and down the sidewalk towards his little apartment a few blocks away. He revels in the thought of having the small living space to himself for a while as his two roommates should be out until at least five. Rounding the corner to his building, Eren pauses briefly and decides to cross the street to get to the small little market on the other side of the road for some afternoon snacks. He patiently waits for the light to change so he can cross, and is startled by the sight of a well-dressed man in a big hurry daringly darting across the car-filled four lane street to try and get to the other side. His attempt is abruptly brought to a halt when a car going 45 MPH hits him head on, and the man flies over the top. With a sort of pigheaded reckless abandon, Eren jumps into the street to try and help the man who is now motionless on the sidewalk. Time seems to slow around him as he makes it to the crumpled figure and immediately checks for signs of life. Quickly realizing the man isn’t breathing, Eren turns him on his back as swiftly and gently as possible and prepares to administer CPR. However, he is abruptly halted by a cold voice that cuts through the air. 

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” the voice seems to sneer at him dripping with contempt. 

Eren looks up to find steely, silver-blue eyes meeting his emerald ones. They are fixed in a cold, remorseless stare. The man is pale as snow and clad in all black--a sharp contrast that only heightens his scorn and mysteriousness. All of Eren’s nerves are suddenly lit on fire and his brainwaves scream danger. This man is dangerous. Taking a shaky breath, Eren holds his ground despite his nerves screaming at him to get up and get the hell out of there. 

“This man is dying. I need to help him,” Eren gets out, albeit a little shakily. 

“Why? He’s not exactly the type you’d want to waste your Good Samaritan act on, brat.” 

At this point Eren is swimming in confusion while the man opposite him seems to have grown infinitely more bored since arriving onto the scene. Momentarily distracted, Eren looks around again to see if anyone else is catching the bullshit coming out of the mystery man’s mouth, and he realizes everything has seemed to slow almost to a halt around him. The bustling pedestrians, speeding cars, and even flapping birds have all slowed to a snail’s pace, and none of them seem to notice the crumpled man, the chocolate-haired boy, or the shadowy figure in the middle of the street. While Eren spins his head around bewildered, the dark haired man looks increasingly unimpressed. After a few moments, he lets out a little huff. 

“Finally! It took the worthless bastard long enough,” the dark man sighs, exasperated. 

Eren spins back around and has to do a double take for his brain to catch up with his eyes. Before him, it appears that what Eren can only imagine as the soul of the recently deceased man is rising up languidly out of his body. The mystery man strides over and forcefully grabs the apparition-like thing in front of Eren by the neck and violently rips the rest of it out of the deceased man’s body. The apparition wails in agony as the grip of the pale fingers tightens around its larynx. Eren has to momentarily cover his ears, but he quickly jumps to his feet when he realizes the raven has no intention of letting go of the ghost, or whatever it is. When Eren reaches out and opens his mouth to protest, the dark man just scoffs and rolls his eyes, gracefully scooting past the boy’s outreached arm and bringing his long, pale fingers to the boy’s shoulder all while still holding tightly onto the soul. Eren feels for a moment a biting cold that he has never experienced in his life. It cuts through his clothes in the spot where the man is touching his shoulder, but this sensation is rapidly replaced by a feeling that his body is being pulled from every direction, and his vision goes black. 

For a few fleeting seconds, Eren feels as if he is hurtling through space and time. He cannot see anything, his body feels like a rag doll being tossed around, and a burning nausea builds in the pit of his stomach. After a few agonizing moments, the sensation suddenly stops and Eren is left practically tumbling over as the hand gripping him unceremoniously lets go of his shoulder. He is able to catch himself before completely face planting into the floor, and he straightens himself up with some effort while pushing the burning nausea in his stomach back down. Regaining his composure, Eren peers around to see he is no longer in a busy street, but in a vast, dimly lit room. The enormous, cavern-like space appears to be made of stone and sparsely ornamented. The closest thing to decoration in the room seems to be four massive Greek-style columns that sit in each of the corners, as well as large dishes filled with blazing fires that hang from the massive ceilings and provide the only source of light. 

Before him is a sight that Eren can only describe as absolutely, gut-wrenchingly terrifying. A huge stone throne sits in the center of the room accompanied by a darkly cloaked figure whose details Eren can’t quite make out, as they seem to be shifting almost every second. Stretching before the throne stands an endless line of apparition-like figures just like the one the raven haired man ripped from the body of the man Eren tried to save. While the poor souls themselves were completely quiet, there was a low whisper filling the room as the man in the throne and the soul in front of him conversed, although Eren could not quite distinguish what was being said, or who was saying it. After a short time, a verdict seemed to be reached, and the man on the throne nodded his head once and struck a gavel that appeared suddenly in his hand. The sound that followed tore through Eren’s very existence as the apparition-like figure let out a screeching wail and began what appeared to be a fruitless attempt to beg for its life. It was at this point that Eren’s senses began to leave him again, and he could feel himself slipping into unconsciousness and crumbling before himself. 

The dark-haired man, watching the scene with little interest as though he had seen it thousands of times, caught out of the corner of his eye his young companion crumbling and reached over to keep the boy from splatting onto the floor. The bitterly cold, biting sensation that filled Eren when the pale figure beside him reached his arm around Eren’s waist was enough to startle him to his senses. He rapidly pulled away and regained his composure once again in order to escape that terrible cold sensation rattling through his body as quickly as possible. The shock to the boy’s senses caused him to let out a resounding and uncouth “FUCK!” and the raven stared at him boredly with one eyebrow slightly elevated. 

“Where… where the hell are we? Who the hell are you?” the boy asked, shaking. 

“Hahaha,” the raven replied sarcastically. “Very funny, kid.” However, seeing the boy’s slightly tanned face graced with a rather stupid, confused expression, Levi realized that the boy, despite having his soul bound to a demon, had absolutely no fucking clue where he was or what was going on. 

Great. Just great, Levi thought. In all of the years that he had had the kid bound to him like an annoying puppy, Levi had never once tried to make contact or seek out his help. He wasn’t even trying to see the boy when he appeared almost out of nowhere desperately trying to save the soul Levi was about the reap. Levi’s still not quite sure why he decided to bring the kid along to Hell in the first place. He also never inquired as to what would actually happen once a human soul was bound to his demonic existence, so he had no way of knowing whether the boy--Eren if he recalled correctly--would actually understand what had happened to him or even be aware of it. Levi’s guess that Eren would be was apparently dead wrong, much to his vexation. Levi let out a long, drawn out sigh, attempting to gain the little composure he had before dealing with the human idiot next to him that seemed to be devolving into a panic attack yet again. 

“This is the Hall of Judgement. Shitty name, I know. It’s where all souls go to be judged after they die. It’s technically located in hell, but even the souls deemed fit to go to heaven come here before moving on. We kind of got stuck with the short end of the stick having to deal with all death on Earth, even the goody two shoes who end up moving on to heaven to spend an eternity bathed in fucking bliss,” the mysterious man says with a very sarcastic eye roll, intentionally avoiding the last question posed to him. 

Eren just gawks at him for a moment before recomposing himself for the third time in one day. Levi has to admit, he’s a little impressed the kid can keep calming himself down so well. 

“So, that creepy man with no discernable face is, like, supposed to be a judge or something? Seriously though, how can he have no face!” Eren blurts out before having to take a few deep, calming breaths. 

“Yup, he’s the judge,” Levi says disinterestedly. “The reason you can’t distinguish his features, or they appear to keep changing, is because he is not supposed to be partial to anything, even his own appearance.” 

“Huh” Eren says thoughtfully as if seriously considering the effectiveness of the system. “But then, that voice...”

“The bookkeepers,” the raven cuts him off. “They’re responsible for detailing every aspect of every human’s life on earth from the day the human is born to the day he or she dies. They recount those moments at the time of judgement, after the human is deceased, and the judge decides what to do with the sorry soul.” 

Just as Levi finishes his explanation to the boy, a familiar face steps up to the podium. Eren’s eyes widen almost comically in recognition as he sees it as the man whom he tried to save in the street. The bruises and cuts that adorned his face from impact with the high speed vehicle have all disappeared, but the man still appears to be nervous as though he is still in the big hurry he was before he died. Eren tries to lean closer to hear what is being said but does not dare step closer. Still, he cannot catch a word that is being murmured. After what feels like hours, but in reality is probably only minutes, the whispery, bodiless voice fades, and the cloaked judge nods his head once as a gavel reappears in his hand. He strikes it once and the soul of the man Eren tried desperately to save begins shrieking like a banshee. Rather than throw his hands over his ears again at the piercing cacophony, Eren begins to run forward to try and help the man now filled to the brim with distress. A cold hand reaches out yet again to stop him, and Eren feels that piercing coldness fill his body. 

“Let go of me! I need to help him! Can’t you hear how terrible he sounds? He’s scared out of his fucking mind,” Eren screams although his own wails do not seem to bother anyone around them just as before. 

“As he should be. Like I said before, brat, don’t bother. He’s not worth it,” the raven spits out, but is promptly ignored by the lanky brunette struggling to be released from his grip. Levi takes a moment to give the boy another dramatic eye roll before pulling him in by the wrist and placing his pale fingertips to the boy’s temple. Eren immediately goes rigid and is filled with horrible scenes of the life of the shrieking soul now being dragged mercilessly away. As if a movie is flashing in his mind, Eren sees the story of the man. A successful accountant, a wife, two loving children, but also a mid-level associate in a prostitution ring, pimping out young girls, taking part in distrubing ativities to keep them in line... Eren feels himself crumble again and finally lets himself fall for the first time that day. The pale man makes no effort to stop him, and as soon as his fingers no longer have contact with Eren’s temple, the images cease, and Eren is left sprawled on the floor, breathing heavily. 

“Like I said, that bastard isn’t worth your help or pity. He’s right where he belongs, and lucky for him hell is in the business of giving as good as it gets,” the raven says, looking down at Eren with a sadistic twist of his lips that sends a shiver down Eren’s spine. 

After the boy crumbles to the floor, Levi lets him lay there for a few minutes and continues watching the “court” proceedings with his signature bored half interest again. When he glances back and determines the kid is composed enough again to withstand the journey out of hell, he speaks up. 

“Okay, kid. As much as I’d love to watch you sit here and shit yourself all day every time someone gets condemned to an eternity of suffering, I have more important things to do that don’t involve me babysitting a lanky, stupid-looking human.” 

Eren glares up at the dark figure in annoyance. He doesn’t appreciate being treated like a child, or being called lanky and stupid, especially now that he’s 24, financially independent of his parents, and living on his own. Well, living with Armin and Mikasa, of course, but he can’t help that the rent is too damn high in Shiganshina. He’s about to give the brooding man a piece of his mind when the raven interjects to ask him where he lives. Determining that he’ll be as rude as possible to this dark, slightly terrifying man who apparently has far too good of a knowledge on the workings of hell, Eren just stares back with a sort of daring look in his eyes. The man hovering over him just sighs and reaches his hand to Eren’s temple again. Suddenly, his mind is instructed to think of his address right away, and he can’t stop it from doing so. With a little satisfied smirk, the raven reaches his hand to Eren’s shoulder and that piercing cold hits him again, followed by the feeling of being pulled from all directions. Once more, he can no longer see, and he feels the nausea coming back even worse than previously. After a few moments of agony, Eren’s butt hits a wooden floor. When he looks around, he realizes he is his own cramped little bedroom back in Shiganshina. He’s about to question the raven on how he was able to manage all of that, but a wave of nausea that he is unable to suppress hits him. Eren jumps to his feet and races to the shared bathroom where he lets out the contents of his stomach into the sink. After his body stops shaking and he can finally breathe properly, the brunette makes his way back to his bedroom to question the sulky figure clad in all black. When he steps in, however, the man is nowhere to be found, leaving Eren to wonder whether what he just experienced was all real, or whether he was seriously tripped up.


	4. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren successfully convinces himself that everything he experienced in hell was just a dream...until a dark man clad in all black shows up at his workplace ready to cause some trouble. Trigger warnings: a little bit of mind fuckery, setting people on fire (it's not as bad as it sounds, I swear!)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello all! This chapter is out a lot earlier than expected because apparently I just don't have as much to do during a pandemic. That's okay though! I'm having fun writing this, so enjoy. Next chapter will probably be in a couple days.

Eren wakes up the next morning feeling exhausted and stressed. His legs are shaky, and his stomach is filled to the brim with a horrible nauseous sensation that makes him question whether he is fit to get out of bed, let alone go to work. He had spent the better part of the previous evening curled up in his bed, rocking back and forth trying to convince himself that what he had experienced was just a dream. After hours of deep breathing exercises and motivational pep talks, Eren determined that everything he experienced with the dark stranger and the wailing soul was, in fact, just a horribly vivid nightmare that had left him sick and spent. In all honesty, it wouldn’t have been the first time. He used to get terrible nightmares after that incident when he was six years old. Feeling a shiver run down his spine, Eren pushes the memories that threaten to surface to the back of his mind. Grabbing a clean shirt and pair of jeans, he quickly changes and walks to the living room.

Eren is greeted by a frantic Armin attempting to dash back and forth looking for notebooks to throw into his worn-out book bag while simultaneously slipping into his sneakers. When Armin sees the brunet, he gives him a hasty greeting before going back to tying a shoe while zipping his bag. 

“Hey Eren! Sorry, I can’t stay long. I’m so late for lecture,” Armin quickly declares. The blond boy is Eren’s oldest friend and perhaps one of the smartest people Eren has ever met. While he, Armin, and Mikasa had all gone to college together, Eren had less than no interest in returning to school after receiving his bachelor’s in journalism. Armin, on the other hand, had eagerly jumped right into a graduate program in econometrics. Although Eren had infinite respect for his friend, he had no desire to be in his place, and briskly waved him off as Armin practically sprinted out the door. 

Eren let the quiet that now settled over the apartment fill him. Even his brief encounter with Armin had been enough to center him and remind him he was living in reality, not some horrible nightmare where souls were getting hauled off to eternal damnation. Determining that one can never have too much coffee, Eren strolls to the kitchen to make himself a cup, even though he has endless supplies to keep him going at  _ Sticks and Scones _ . Hearing a door shut somewhere in the hallway, he turns to see his other roommate and adoptive sister Mikasa, still dressed for bed,  enter the kitchen.

“Hey, ’Kasa! Up a little late, aren’t you?” Eren greets the black-haired girl with a smile.

“I don’t go into the office until eight today, thank you,” she replies snarkily. He gives her a cheeky grin and goes back to his coffee. 

“Hey, where were you last night? You never came out for dinner, and I heard you mumbling to yourself in the dark before I went to bed. Is everything alright?” she asks, a touch of concern now gracing her delicate features. 

Eren lets out a small sigh. Of course Mikasa would pick up on something wrong with him. She had always been over protective of him, to a fault even. “I’m fine,” Eren hurriedly replies. “Just some nightmare. No big deal.”

“Nightmare! Again, Eren? That’s not good. You haven’t had them in so long, but it doesn’t mean they can’t come back. Maybe you should take the day off and get some more rest. I remember how they used to exhaust you…”

“I’m fine, Mikasa. Besides, I definitely don’t make enough money to be skipping a day of work,” he cuts her off with. “Speaking of which, I should be heading out.”

“Okay, I won’t lecture you. Call me if you need anything though,” she says with thinly veiled concern still lacing her voice.

With a quick nod and a wave towards her, Eren grabs his wallet and strides out of the apartment, desperately trying to push the memories boiling at the surface of his mind down for the second time that day. 

_____________________________________________________________________________

If Eren’s day had started bad, it gradually got worse at  _ Sticks and Scones _ . An hour into his shift, he developed a massive migraine that made it feel as though his skull was being cracked open. Seeing her employee’s face scrunched in pain, Hange had shooed the brunet to the back of the shop to rest during the downtime following the early morning rush. After hearing the bell at the door jingle, Eren briefly contemplated getting up from the floor where he held his head between his legs to help Connie and Sasha, and then quickly decided against it when a small wave of nausea hit him. However, it didn’t take long for Sasha to come find him. 

“Hey, Eren…Geez, are you okay?” she asks after seeing him folded up on the floor. 

“Yeah, just a small migraine,” Eren replies lightly so as not to worry the girl. “What’s up?” 

“Oh, well there’s this kinda dangerous-looking guy inquiring about you at the front. He said he thought you worked here, so I told him you were in the back and that I’d come get you. Seriously, Eren, why didn’t you tell me you know dark and mysterious men? I would have become friends with you way faster,” she jokes. 

“Dark and mysterious? I don’t know anyone like that. Can you just tell him I’m busy or something? I’m honestly not in the mood to deal with an annoying customer right now.” 

“Umm… okay,” Sasha responds hesitantly. Eren revels in the silence that falls over the back room as the girl scurries away, but it is promptly interrupted again when her footsteps make their way back to where he is sitting. 

“He… he kind of insists that you come out. He looks kind of angry, Eren.” Sasha’s voice is tinged with a slight uneasiness that Eren pays no mind to as his temper rapidly flares. 

“Look, Sasha, my head is killing me. Just tell the guy to buy a drink or get the hell out…” Eren would have continued his little rant to the poor girl, but shrieking wails suddenly fill every corner of his mind and his breathing becomes labored. Caught off guard and in serious pain, Eren struggles to his feet and steps forward, dazed and confused. With this action, the wails suddenly stop, and he lets himself slide back down onto the floor. This, apparently, is the wrong move as the shrieks instantly begin again once his body hits the floor. Eren jumps back to his feet and races to the front counter with a frantic-looking Sasha following right behind him. The sight before him makes him freeze in his tracks, and he barely notices that the wailing in his head has stopped again. It’s the same dark-haired man as before, once again clad in all black with an expensive looking blazer covering his button down shirt that is tightly tucked into dark jeans and meticulously polished loafers. Eren just gapes at him stupidly for a few seconds before stepping up to the register. 

Unable to hide the shaking in his voice he asks, “What...what can I get you?” The man just raises his eyebrows at the boy for a few seconds, giving Eren the most unimpressed look he is sure those pale features could muster. 

“Coffee. Black,” is all the man replies before throwing some bills down and stepping over to the pick-up counter. Eren gets to pouring the man’s coffee, careful not to splash any of the hot liquid onto his hands. When he’s done, he puts a lid on the drink and turns back to the man, but doesn’t step forward to hand him his beverage, instead opting to intensely stare the dark man down. 

“Can I have my fucking coffee or what?” the man inquires, slightly annoyed. Behind Eren, Connie and Sasha are messing around, paying no attention to the scene at hand, while Hange is somewhere in the bookstore checking inventory. Eren goes from raptly staring at the man to rapidly blinking his eyes, a motion which seems to shift the pale man’s features from slightly annoyed to very weirded out. 

“What the fuck are you doing, brat? You look like a spastic dragonfly.” 

“I know you’re not real. You can’t be real. You’re just a figment of my imagination existing in a nightmare. I must have fallen asleep on the floor. All I have to do is wait to wake up. I figured it all out last night,” the boy mumbles nonstop. 

“Ya figured it out, did you?” the raven interrupts as his features settle to that slightly annoyed, slightly bored state again. 

“Yes! I know you’re not real. You’ll disappear eventually, just like you did last night.” Eren declares eagerly as if hoping that moment will happen anytime now. 

“First of all, I didn’t disappear. I left your sorry ass behind so you could puke out your guts to your heart’s content. Second of all, I’m about as real as real can be, so cut the bullshit, brat.” 

“If you’re so real, then fucking prove it. I dare you, you creepy figment of my imagination!” Eren proclaims, gesturing wildly with a manic look in his eyes. 

If the raven was slightly annoyed at not getting his coffee, then he was majorly annoyed at being challenged. This seemed to delight the brunet boy to no end. _Oh well_ , Levi thought. _Guess it can’t be helped._

The raven turns to the chocolate-haired girl messing around with the bald boy by the coffee machines and snaps his fingers. Suddenly, the machine lets off a little spark, and the girl’s sleeve catches on fire. Not even a moment passes before Sasha, Connie, and Eren all begin to freak out and scream their heads off. Sasha screaming for someone to put out the fire, Connie screaming for help, and Eren desperately screaming at the raven to put out the fire on his friend’s arm that he had apparently caused with a snap of his fingers. After a few moments of letting the three kids continue to frantically screech, Levi snaps his fingers again, and the fire abruptly ceases. In its place is the burned away fabric of Sasha’s shirt, and a few burns sprinkled along her arm. 

By this time, Hange has rushed over and rapidly evaluated the situation, not even bothering to pay attention to the dark-haired customer to her left.

“Oh my God, Sasha! We have to get you to a hospital! Connie, grab your keys! You can have the rest of the day off,” she says frantically. 

“I don’t mean to interject, but I’d hate to see one of your workers lose his shift because of a little accident. I have a car. I can take the girl to the hospital. Besides, those burns don’t look too serious anyway,” Levi says calmly in the most sincere voice he can muster that is, nevertheless, laced with mischievousness. A loud and resounding “NO!” from Eren cuts off Hange’s reply. 

“I’ll take her,” the brunet replies rapidly. 

“Eren, sweetie, you don’t have a car,” Hange says kindly. 

“Well, I can always bring the both of them along in my car. Now that I think about it, it would probably be good to have a friend go with her. For support and all,” Levi interjects again. 

Seeing that there is no way in heaven or hell he is getting out of the coffee shop without the raven-haired man in tow, Eren quickly agrees in hopes that he can get the dangerous man away from his other friends. 

“Yeah, let’s do that. My head has been killing me all day anyway.” 

And so, with a triumphant grin from the raven, a sick look from Eren, and a small whimper from Sasha, the trio set out for the hospital. 

_____________________________________________________________________________

Once the three had made their way outside, another snap of the dark man’s fingers made a black Audi A8 appear instantaneously before their eyes. A quick glance at Sasha confirmed to Eren that she was more focused on the small burns dotting her arm than her surroundings, and she hadn’t noticed the luxury vehicle appear in front of them as if out of thin air. With a little tug on her non-burnt sleeve, Eren leads the slightly dazed girl to the back of the car and shuts her in. He opts to sit up front not wanting Sasha anywhere near the man that had set her on fire with a snap of his fingers. As Eren is getting into the car, he feels fierce eyes watching his every move. When he looks up, his emerald orbs are locked with icy blue-grey ones that study his face for a few seconds. With a ruthless smile gracing his features, the raven asks: 

“Do you think I’m real now?” 

Eren gives him a furious look before getting in the car and slamming the door. The raven gracefully steps into the vehicle and starts the engine with a little smirk. A few minutes of tense silence are finally broken by Sasha’s voice coming from the backseat. 

“ Thank you for helping me, Mr.…”

“Levi. Just Levi is fine.” Eren looks over to the mysterious man, realizing that he had never asked for his name. Levi seems to fit him, though Eren thinks Mr. Sadistic Asshole would be even better. The brunet rubs his temples as the increasing stress he is feeling starts to bring back his ruthless migraine. Sasha peers at him from behind with a worried expression growing on her face again. 

“Eren, your head is still hurting that badly?” 

“Oh, umm, no. I’m just a bit tired,” he lies, not wanting to bring up the fact that a few minutes prior agonizing wails had filled his mind making him feel like his head was exploding. 

Leaning over slightly, Levi whispers to Eren, “You know, you should have just come up front when I sent the girl to get you. It could have saved you a lot of pain.” 

As realization dawns on Eren, he tries his best to keep his voice low as he viciously replies, “It was  _ you  _ who did that to me? You filled my head with screaming just to get me to come greet you?”

“Well of course, who else would it have been?” Levi retorts. 

At this point, it takes all of Eren’s well practiced self-control to not climb out of his seat and attack the man next to him. Eren instead resorts to questioning the man to understand why he keeps appearing out of nowhere just to terrorize him.

“Why the fuck do you keep showing up around me acting like a goddamn animal? You can’t just set people on fire, you know. That’s a widely recognized not okay thing to do!” Eren spits venomously, trying to keep his voice down. 

“Well, apparently I  _ can  _ just set people on fire. You saw for yourself. And you’re honestly telling me you still don’t get what’s going on here. I thought I explained it so well yesterday. You’re a bit dumber than you look, brat.” 

“The only thing you explained to me is that you’re a psychotic man!”

“You’re wrong on both counts there. I’m of quite sound mind, and I can really be better described as a demon rather than a man, but man works if that’s all you can wrap your little head around.” 

“A...a demon.”

“No shit, brat.” 

“Why do you keep bothering me, though? I didn’t do anything to deserve the harassment of a demon! I’m a pretty decent guy. I mean, I’m late on my rent for last month, but that actually happens pretty often. I help old ladies cross the street. I don’t really volunteer a lot, but I’m also super busy! It’s hard to find spare time when I’m constantly working and trying to find writing jobs, and…”

“It’s nothing that you did, brat,” Levi interrupts. “It’s more what you didn’t do, really.”

“What I didn’t do…” Eren says thoughtfully. Levi decides that now is not the best time to tell the kid he was supposed to have died at the tender age of six, and instead jumps on to the next important piece of information. 

“Yes, something that you didn’t do, and now your soul is sort of bound to me. Well, it has been for a while now. I just never felt the need to come check up on you until you jumped in the middle of a busy street and tried to save a soul I was supposed to reap,” Levi explains somewhat lamely. 

“What didn’t I do?” 

“That’s not important, brat. What is important is now that I’ve formally recognized this little connection with you, you’re going to do what I tell you no matter what.”

“First of all, my name is Eren. It’s not a difficult name, so you should really try using it. Second of all, why should I do what you say? You’re pretty fucking awful,” Eren declares snootily. 

“I am a demon. ‘Pretty fucking awful’ comes with the territory. Also, filling your head with a little noise and setting your friend’s sleeve on fire for a few seconds was only a warm up. If you really piss me off,  _ Eren _ , I will make your existence a living hell,” Levi bites back. 

This is enough to shut Eren’s mouth. As much as he wants to one up the raven, he doesn’t want to put any of his friend’s in unnecessary danger. He’s also fairly certain Levi can make good on his promise to make his existence a living hell. After a few more minutes brooding in silence, Eren speaks up again.

“So, you can just set people on fire and make cars magically appear and shit?” Eren inquires.

Normally, Levi wouldn’t pay the brunet’s tiresome questions any attention, but he did set the boy’s friend on fire, and he was feeling a bit generous. “Not exactly. You can’t just get nothing from nothing. I saw the car a few blocks over when I was coming up to the coffee shop, so I just decided to borrow it for a few hours. Fire, well hellfire, is inherent to all demons, so I suppose you could say I just made that appear. And the screams, they were all real. Coming from the pits of Hell. I just gave your mind a little… nudge so you could hear them.” 

After processing all of the information Levi provides him, Eren decides to not focus on the hellfire or the fact that Levi can will his mind to hear awful noises from the depths of hell. “Wait, you stole this car!” 

“Borrowed. I borrowed this car.” 

“Are you going to put it back?”

“Sure. After I’m done using it.”

“Where you  _ found  _ it.”

“I wasn’t planning on that.”

“So you did steal it!”

“Whatever, brat. We’re almost at the hospital, so get your yappy little ass out of the car and help your friend in. I’ll be waiting out here.” 

“Wait, you want me to come back when I’m done?”

“Obviously.”

“Oh, why?” It apparently wasn’t obvious to Eren. 

“I didn’t come to the coffee shop for a nice little chat. I need your help with something,” Levi says with a rather intense eye roll. 

“What could you possibly need  _ my  _ help with?” 

“Erwin says it’s been too long since I committed any evil deeds on earth. Apparently the standard soul reaping just doesn’t cut it anymore even for high level demons now that the higher ups are busting our asses to insure more souls end up in Hell. So, I’m taking you along for your first demonic outing.” Levi says the last part extremely sarcastically, and his face reveals that he is less than thrilled to be taking Eren along anywhere. 

“What do you need me to do?” Eren asks timidly.

“I need you to help me tempt the chief of the Shiganshina Police Force to commit a crime.” 


	5. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren lets his temper get the better of him, putting himself in a precarious situation. Somewhere in Heaven, two angel realize a certain soul has been missing for 18 years.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello all! I realized I made a mistake on the previous chapter and called it "Chapter 3". It was actually Chapter2. This one is three. These next few chapters will focus more on Eren and Levi forming a bond before shit hits the fan. After that, the main plot of the story will really start to kick off. I already have the next chapter written thanks to an intense writing session on Saturday, but it needs a lot of editing. It should be out in a few days, though.

At around the same time that Eren was leading Sasha into the hospital to have her burns checked, wondering what force he had managed to piss off to have his soul immutably bound to a demon, a petite angel was strolling the halls of heaven, making her way towards the file room. She had a light bounce in her step, and her blond hair and shining blue eyes seemed to radiate a calming, celestial glow. Despite her tranquil appearance, the angel was actually quite nervous. She had a distinct nagging in the back of her mind that she had forgotten to do something. A nagging that only grew in intensity as she continued down the long, ivory colored corridors. 

What she had forgotten to do was nothing as tedious as ensuring the stocks of holy water were well supplied, or meticulously storing records of all good deeds done on earth. It was something truly important. This nagging feeling had plagued her for years now, but as she was an angel, years didn’t really mean much to her. In fact, it wasn’t until exactly one day prior that the quiet nagging had become a deafening roar in her mind, and her senses buzzed with the feeling that something was off in the universe. As she ambled up to the file room, she was careful to keep her eyes averted and face serene so as not to arouse any suspicion from her fellow angels.

Once inside the room, she glanced around at the thousands and thousands of filing cabinets that filled the space and stretched far beyond her line of sight. Each file housed a record of every birth that had ever occurred on earth, providing a detailed account of the life and death of each individual soul, and in which realm the soul had been judged to eternally rest. Spotting a clerk shuffling around with stacks of files in his arms, she made her way over to greet him. 

“Excuse me, would you mind getting me the records for every soul that died 18 years ago?” the angel inquires politely. 

“Of course, ma’am. If you’re looking for a specific soul, though, might I suggest you narrow down your search a bit. It would take one angel weeks to sort through all of the souls that died on earth 18 years ago,” the clerk squeaks a bit nervously, as if he’s not quite sure he has the authority to question the will of an angel. However, she just smiles at him graciously. 

“That’s a much better idea! I am looking for a specific soul. I believe he was a young boy. Maybe around the age of six. If I recall correctly, he would have died from blood loss due to a knife wound in his stomach,” she says cheerfully, despite the morbid topic. 

“Perfect! That will easily narrow down the list.”

With that, the clerk gets to work quickly grabbing around 50 files and placing them in front of the angel. A small shudder runs down her spine when she sees all the records of young boys killed by knife wounds 18 years ago. What were the humans getting up to down there? 

Grabbing the file closest to her, the angel hastily reads through it and then tosses it aside. Although she’s not quite sure what she’s looking for, she has a feeling she’ll know when she sees it. After about 15 files, the angel finally finds what, or rather who, she’s been looking for. When she examines the record, her face grows pale in the glowing light. In that moment, she feels a pressure on her back as someone leans over her shoulder, observing the record in her hands. The angel turns around swiftly, not wanting anyone to realize the grievous mistake she has made, but her eyes quickly soften when she recognizes the newcomer. 

“Geez, you look like you pissed yourself, Historia!” Although the comment is crude, the angel who utters it holds nothing but love and admiration in her hazel eyes as she stares into the  cerulean ones in front of her. 

“You scared me half to death, Ymir! What are you even doing here? You hate the file room,” Historia replies with an annoyed huff, though she appears far calmer in the presence of the dark-eyed angel than she was a few minutes prior. 

“I’m bored! I’m not allowed to travel down to earth without a partner, and you’re the only one willing to go with me. I figured I’d come and annoy you for a while, but if I knew you were in a place this boring, I never would have come,” Ymir whines. 

“And whose fault is that?” 

“Ugh, you hit one human with blinding celestial light and suddenly you’re on everyone’s shit list for the century. It’s just not fair.” Historia rolls her eyes at Ymir’s tantrum and turns back to glance at the file, a worried expression growing on her face again. 

“What’s up with the file?”

“I messed up, Ymir. Really badly,” Historia says anxiously, voice dropping. 

“Oh, come on. It can’t be blinding celestial light bad.”

Rather than reply, Historia hands Ymir the file with slightly shaking hands. Ymir glances at it briskly, and her face pales ever so slightly. 

“This boy, Eren Jaeger, was supposed to die at the age of six?”

“Yes.”

“It seems that life events have continued to be recorded, even though he was supposed to die. The problem is, I can’t read any of it. Everything after age six is inked out in black. What does that mean?” 

“It means that we don’t have access to those records.”

“What? How could we not have access?” Ymir inquires loudly, and Historia shushes her.

“Because those records belong to Hell. Whenever something is inked in black, it means that that information is the property of the Underworld.”

“That means…”

“Yeah,” Historia says, voice dropping to a whisper. “That boy’s still alive, and his soul is bound to a demon.”

“Tory, do you  _ realize _ how dangerous this is? If someone found out...how did you know about this?” Ymir urgently whispers. 

“I was supposed to be the one to greet Eren Jaeger’s soul when he arrived in Heaven 18 years ago.”

“How did you not realize!?”

“I don’t know, Ymir! It’s like I just completely forgot,” Historia utters in distress.

“If someone interfered to save that boy’s life and have his soul bound to a demon, then there’s a chance that same person interfered with your memory. We  _ need _ to find that boy, Historia.” 

_____________________________________________________________________________

Back on Earth, Eren is slowly making his way out of the hospital. At Sasha’s assurance that she would be fine and that her grandmother would come to take her home, Eren had left her in the waiting room, imploring her to call if she needed anything. He steps out into the warm afternoon air and immediately spots the dark luxury vehicle parked across the street. If there is anything Levi has, it is style and aesthetic. A dark style and a murderous aesthetic, but style and aesthetic nonetheless. He takes his time walking up to the car, still trying to comprehend just what type of situation he now finds himself in. Despite his languid pace, it doesn’t take Eren long to reach the vehicle, mind racing as thoughts and fears begin to overwhelm him. 

Levi does not move from his seat as he watches Eren freeze outside the car, signs of panic beginning to show on his features. The kid really has a knack for making stupid faces, and Levi is beginning to wonder if he would need to coax Eren inside the vehicle to get the boy to accompany him. However, Eren intensely stares and blinks a few times as he had done in the cafe, as if checking to see if he is still living in reality, and then walks around to open the passenger-side door. Levi has to admit, he is impressed with the boy’s resilience, though he recognizes the cracks in Eren’s facade. The kid clearly has lots of practice in calming himself down, though from anger or fear, Levi can not say for sure. He makes a mental note to test Eren’s behavioral control in the future, just to see what would happen. It could be fun. 

Neither of them speak as Levi starts the car and drives off in the direction of the police station. He glances over at the boy a few times, but finds him staring intently ahead. The lack of chatter from Eren is a little unsettling, considering he hardly ever shuts up, and Levi is beginning to think he would have to get the ball rolling on the conversation,at least to ensure the kid wouldn’t fuck up inside the police station. However, Eren eventually breaks the silence, to the slight relief of the demon. 

“What is it that you need me to do inside the police station? It’s not like I can just march in and demand to see the Chief of Police?” Eren says, his snooty demeanor returning. Levi’s intense eye roll also returns as he observes the boy’s swift shift in attitude. 

“Well, obviously not, brat. I’m not a complete idiot. I have little to no faith in your capability to carry out anything complex, so we’re going to start with something simple,” Levi says impudently. 

“What do you want me to do?” Eren asks, annoyance failing to mask the slight timidness returning to his voice. 

“All I need you to do is take a file into the station, and hand it in at the reception desk. It’s addressed to the Chief, so he should get it eventually.” 

“Wait, that’s seriously all you need me to do!? You could do that yourself.”

“Yeah, but it’s a little beneath me. Plus, that’s what I have you around for.”

“Beneath you! Didn’t you say demonic acts were your duty, or something?”

“Yes, but honestly, the game has changed so much. It’s no longer spurring the Spanish Inquisition, supporting the Crusades, or throwing a diseased rat on a ship to help spread the Plague. With how violent humans have become-- all the weapons you’ve developed to easily kill each other, globalize diseases, proliferate hate--you’ve really taken the whole unforgivable acts thing into your own hands. I have to say, your race’s recent evil streak has really made my job easier.” 

Eren scoffs at this. “Humans have always been violent. It’s not like it’s a recent thing. They’ve also been good too, and they still can be,” he snaps back determinedly. 

“Hmm,” Levi hums thoughtfully as if considering Eren’s proposition that humans have, in fact, always been brutal without demonic interference. 

“A little ironic though, don’t you think? Humans being God’s special little creation and all. It’s a little sadistic, really,” Levi retorts with a smirk. Eren chooses not to answer, and instead goes back to staring out the windshield in silence. Levi glances over and sees the frustration evident from his young companion’s clenched fists and intense effort to not even spare him a glance. He smiles a little to himself at this development in Eren’s behavior. 

_____________________________________________________________________________

As Levi parks the car in front of the Shiganshina Central Police Station, a black envelope appears in his hands that he passes over to Eren. Eren has to suppress his own eye roll. The demon’s color palette preferences, or lack thereof, were a tad droll. Without sparing Levi a second glance, he makes his way inside. Eren can feel the man’s intense stare and smirk on him as he walks away, but he refuses to look back. 

The station is buzzing with activity, and he has to step out of the way several times to avoid collision with frantic looking officers and staff. He makes his way up to the receptionist’s desk, suddenly a little nervous that the file he has won’t be accepted. However, he encounters no problems when he informs the lady behind the desk that he has information he would like the Chief of Police to see, and she takes it from him and politely assures Eren that it will be given to the man. With that, Eren makes his way out of the building, realizing just how nervous he had become before the file was taken off his hands. However, his body quickly calms down as he steps back into the car. 

“I did it,” Eren informs Levi. 

“ _ Good job _ ,” the demon responds mockingly. 

“What was in the file, anyway?” Eren counters, ignoring Levi’s degrading tone. The demon pauses for a minute, as if considering whether he should answer Eren’s question, but decides to do so. 

“A little while back, an intoxicated off duty officer shot and killed an unarmed young man behind a bar. He was able to cover up the crime and make it look like a robbery gone wrong. That officer just so happens to be the Chief of Police’s closest friend. In the file, I provided him all the evidence he needs to incriminate his friend and charge him with murder. However, considering the Chief’s streak of nepotism and sizable gambling debts, I’d say he won’t turn in his friend. Might even blackmail him,” Levi responds matter-of-factly.

Eren whips his head around to look at Levi, eyes comically wide, filling with rage. “He’s just going to let the officer get away with a cold-blooded murder! That’s not right!” Eren shouts, his temper flaring. 

“That’s the point,” Levi deadpans. 

“No, it’s not right. I won’t let this happen. He’s the Chief of Police for God’s sake!” And with that, Eren jumps out of the car and stomps up to the police station for the second time. Levi’s eyes widen for a fraction of a second. He never imagined that this piece of information would bother Eren so much. But something about Eren’s reaction is so fascinating to him. The boy is hot and cold, switching from one to the other in an instant. Levi has to admit, he finds it a bit intriguing. He has never encountered a human quite like Eren, so willing to put his values out on the line, and he is a little too interested in what the boy will do next. So, as Eren marches up to the police station, Levi opts to stay behind and watch for the time being. 

_____________________________________________________________________________

Once inside the station, Eren knew he would have to act fast. He realized he would never be granted admittance if he just stomped up and demanded an audience with the Chief of Police. Instead, he utilizes the slight chaos of the station and slips in with some officers who are making their way past the receptionist’s desk and towards the offices in the back. Once past the desk, Eren breaks off from the officers to search for the chief’s office, attempting to appear as calm and confident as possible so as not to arouse suspicion. Fortunately, no one pays him any attention, and he is quickly able to find the designated office. He decides to knock once before entering, not bothering to wait for admittance. As he enters, Eren notices the Chief has the black file open in his hands, his features growing anxious and his face slightly pale. Eren makes a quick mental note of how fast and efficient the receptionist had gotten the file to the man, and he is a tad impressed. He closes the door quietly behind him, but realizes the Chief hasn’t even heard him enter. Eren clears his throat to get the man’s attention and begins to speak. 

“Sir, I realize you must be feeling a lot of emotions when it comes to the contents of that file, but I want to implore you to do the right thing. An innocent man has died, and he deserves justice,” Eren says, trying to sound authoritative and sincere but coming off rather awkward. He really had no plan going into this, and that was becoming painfully obvious.

The Chief jumps in his seat slightly having realized the boy.

“This file...you sent it,” the man whispers.

“Yes, I did. I understand this is difficult for you, but all the evidence you need to take down the rogue officer is in there. I know you’ll do the right thing,” Eren replies, though the confidence he was hoping to emit dwindles slightly when he remembers Levi’s mention of the man’s nepotism and gambling debts. The Chief seems to pick up on Eren’s growing uneasiness, while his own nervousness quickly passes. 

“Oh, I’ll do the right thing,” the man replies with growing confidence. He closes the file and takes out a lighter, making his way around the desk to a waste bin. He lights the black file on fire before dropping it into the empty bin and walking over to open the window, so the smoke doesn’t set off the alarms. Eren stares at him, mouth agape. 

“How...how could you do that? That man was murdered. He deserves justice,” Eren stutters, his face becoming the pale one in the room. 

“Listen, son. I don’t know how you found that evidence, but I can say for certain that you don’t understand the politics that come with running a police force. I can’t just charge one of my best officers with murder, especially the murder of some good-for-nothing kid that was out too late drinking and making poor decisions,” the man bites back with a twang in his voice. Eren cannot believe his ears. Spots of white obstruct his vision as rage overtakes his body. 

“FINE THEN!” he screams. “I wanted to give you a chance to do the right thing, but I can see it’s not worth it. I’ll go to every newspaper in the city, in the  _ country _ , and tell them what I know. I don’t care how long it takes one of them to believe me, to publish this story. I won’t stop until your evil, corrupt ass is taken down for your crimes,” Eren shrieks at the man, arms gesticulating wildly. 

The Chief remains calm, staring at the boy for a few seconds to judge whether or not he’s serious. Coming to a conclusion, he pulls a gun from his belt and points it at Eren.

“You can’t just shoot me! We’re in the middle of a police station,” Eren screeches. 

“Can’t I?” The man answers calmly, and a shiver runs down Eren’s spine as he recalls similar words being spoken to him by Levi when he had lit Sasha’s arm on fire. “I can say it was self-defense. Who’re they going to believe? The Chief of the Shiganshina Police Force, or a stupid kid who snuck into the station?” With that, the man raises his gun to the boy, and Eren realizes what a terrible blunder he has made. He had let his anger get the better of him, and now he was in a precarious, life and death situation that he was unlikely to get out of. 

Before he can even think to scream, a dark figure appears before his eyes and obstructs his vision. Eren feels arms snake around his waist, and a numbingly cold, biting sensation pierces through his clothes and fills his body where the arms are wrapping around him. Then, Eren’s vision goes dark, he has the distinct feeling of being pulled in every direction, and the increasingly-familiar nausea returns to his stomach. 

When the terrible sensations flooding his body suddenly stop, Eren collapses to his knees and looks up to see Levi standing over him with a small smirk playing on his lips. After a moment of panting and trying to control his stomach, Eren shakily gets to his feet while Levi takes a step back, not offering the boy a hand in getting up. When he looks around, Eren sees that he’s in his cramped bedroom again. The light peeking through the small window is glowing orange, indicating the onset of the evening, and the short amount of time before Armin and Mikasa will arrive home. However, his attention is quickly diverted back to Levi, and he glares at the dark creature before him. 

“You’re an ass,” Eren bites a little lamely, still too overcome with anger to form a decent insult. This seems to amuse Levi to no end, both the boy’s poor insult, and his shaking anger still evident. 

“You honestly couldn’t have expected me to follow you in for your little temper tantrum?” Levi taunts. 

“It’s not that! How could you just...how could you let an innocent person’s death be taken so lightly? Now that man will never get justice, his family will never know what really happened, and those corrupt, evil bastards will stay in their cushy positions of power,” Eren practically screams, trying to calm his anger and failing miserably. 

“You’re right, Eren. That young man will never get justice on earth. But I’m not the one who killed him, who told the Chief to burn the file, so don’t blame me. All I did was give the man a choice, and he chose. So while there may not be any justice on earth, there’s certainly justice in Hell, and you can bet your ass that man will pay for his crimes,” Levi says earnestly, all hints of mockery gone from his voice. 

“How...how did you know I was in danger?” Eren asks, voice softening as his anger finally dissipates with the demon’s words. Levi pauses for a moment, considering how best to answer Eren.

“It’s hard to explain. I realized the other day that I can easily feel your moods, and if I focus hard enough, I’m able to see what you can in the present moment. I think it’s a result of the whole soul connection thing,” Levi states, though he sounds less assured than he normally does. 

“Does that mean I can feel your moods, too?” Eren asks curiously. 

His question makes Levi snort. “Would you want to?”

“No, probably not,” Eren laughs lightly, a soft smile gracing his lips. Levi is amazed at how quickly the boy has calmed down.

“Speaking of which, can you go take some painkillers or something, brat. Your headache is annoying the Hell out of me,” Levi says, his snarky demeanor returning. 

“Annoying the hell out of you. Maybe that wouldn’t be such a bad thing,” Eren cuts back, making his way over to his nightstand and pulling out the small bottle of medicine he keeps on hand. Levi responds to Eren’s comment with his signature eye roll, but a small smile still tugs at his lips. 

As the boy opens his mouth to speak again, a slam from the front of the apartment directs Eren’s attention away from Levi.

“Oh, Mikasa or Armin must be home. Let me just go say a quick…” The words die on his lips when he sees that Levi is no longer in his room, having vanished into thin air. Eren just sighs and makes his way out to the living room. 

He is greeted by two people: Mikasa, and her long-term boyfriend Reiner. Reiner is an extremely buff, blonde-haired man with light eyes and a stern expression frequently gracing his features. Despite the man’s unapproachable appearance, he is actually quite friendly and lighthearted, a noticeable contrast to his adoptive sister’s guarded and frequently aloof personality. Eren isn’t quite sure how the two have managed to make it through four years of being together, but he’s impressed with the couple’s resilience. He goes to greet Reiner with a firm handshake, knowing the larger man is not a huge fan of hugging. 

“Hey, Eren. Mind if I stay for dinner?” Reiner asks unnecessarily, as he practically lives with them on the weekends and even a few weekdays here and there. 

“Yeah, no problem! Make yourself right at home,” Eren replies politely. 

Armin, not far behind the pair, makes his way into the apartment a few minutes later. He greets all of his friends enthusiastically, despite the dark circles under his eyes.

“Reiner! You staying for dinner?” he asks cheerfully. 

“Yup,” the large man replies. 

“Perfect! Eren, have you started making food yet?”

“Ahh nope. I kind of got distracted,” he replies sheepishly, deciding it would be best not to mention to his friends he spent the day traveling around the city with a demon.

“Even better! Now we won’t have to suffer through your extremely lacking culinary skills tonight,” Armin retorts playfully. 

“Okay, ouch man. That really hurts. I try my best, you know. I’ve only overcooked pasta and burned spaghetti sauce, like, three times, which isn’t even that bad.” 

“How do you overcook pasta?” Reiner asks, amused. 

“It’s a lot easier than you think,” Eren declares.

“Oh, God, Eren. Enough about your terrible adulting skills. Let’s make some food. I’m fucking starving,” Mikasa cuts in, vexed. 

“You got it, Sis,” he snaps back in a mocking tone. She just rolls her eyes and starts pulling out pans, but gives Eren a small side smile to let him know she’s happy to see him. Eren grins back at her. 

As he assists Mikasa with the cooking, Eren can’t help but let his thoughts drift to Levi. He is extremely confused by the dark man...or rather, the demon. He is cruel and sadistic, and has put Eren through a hell of a day today, but he also seems to care intensely about justice being served to the evil done on earth. It is an odd dichotomy in the man and makes Eren think that maybe there is a good side to Levi. It is in that moment that Eren, standing in the center of his communal kitchen holding a pasta strainer, decides he will make it his mission to find the good in Levi, and pull it out of him. Eren is nothing if not stubborn, and he will succeed in turning Levi into a decent demon, as ironic as it sounds.

_____________________________________________________________________________

As the group of friends sit around the couches in the living room eating dinner, a dark figure makes their way up to the roof of the adjacent building and peers into the small apartment. They take note of the large, light-haired man, the raven-haired girl resting by his side, the small blond boy sitting cross legged on the floor, and finally, the lanky brunette boy with the startling emerald eyes. The figure’s focus remains on the lanky boy, eyes intently watching his every move. They had noticed it yesterday, after years of waiting. His aura has finally changed, shifting to a deeper, darker hue. He has finally made contact with his demon and has recognized the unyielding connection he has with one of the creatures of Hell.  _ Finally _ , the mysterious figure sighs. The next phase of their mission could begin. 


	6. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren goes on another outing with Levi, and his attempts to demonstrate acts of good to the demon fail miserably. Later in the day, he meets two strangers who seem to know all about his situation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick update this time. I'm going out of town for a few days soon, so I want to do as much writing as I can in the next few days. This chapter doesn't have any trigger warnings. It is pretty much angst free and high(er) in fluff. The next chapter is going to be a lot heavier, and it will officially mark the end of what I have dubbed as 'the bonding arc'. After that, shit gets real. Hope you enjoy the lighter chapter! Also, for those of you who get it, there is a loose John Mulaney joke reference in here. He's hilarious, and if you heaven't ever seen his standup, you should check it out!

Eren wakes up the next morning expecting to find Levi hovering menacingly over him, demanding that he accompany him on another sinister outing. However, as Eren rubs the sleep out of his tired eyes, he notices that his room is devoid of another presence. He gets up and makes his way to the kitchen, greeting a once again frantic Armin who is already halfway out the door. Eren makes note of Reiner sitting at the table sipping coffee, but Mikasa is nowhere to be found. 

“Morning, Reiner. Did Mika already leave for work?” 

“Yeah, she had to get an early start this morning. She said something about her boss being a fascist asshole demanding that she come into the office earlier.” 

Eren snorts. “Yup, sounds like Mikasa. Is there still some coffee left in the pot?”

“Yeah, help yourself.” 

The two settle into a comfortable silence as Eren pours his coffee and sits down at the table. He can feel himself becoming rejuvenated and ready to face the day with just the first sip. Although he is eager to put his plan of bringing the good out of Levi into action, Eren is hoping the demon doesn’t disturb his workday agan. After all, his rent isn’t going to pay itself. Eren enjoys the few minutes of peace he can have sipping his coffee and chatting with Reiner, but he soon has to leave for work. 

Several days pass like this. Eren getting up early, greeting a frantic Armin, chatting with Mikasa or Reiner in the morning, and then going off to work for the day. Levi doesn’t come around, doesn’t even attempt to make contact with Eren. At first it bothers the boy. He was eager to see the small sparks of good in Levi again and try to encourage them. After day two of Levi’s absence, Eren begins to revert back to thinking everything he had experienced was one long, messed up dream. By day five, he begins to accept that his mind could never make up such a wild and incongruous fantasy, and Levi is just not contacting him for whatever reason. It didn’t particularly shock Eren given that the demon didn’t seem to pay any mind to his personal schedule when he had whisked Eren off to hell or showed up at  _ Sticks and Scones  _ demanding help. A part of him realizes that less contact with the fiend is probably better for his own well being and morals. 

So, after a full week passes without a word from Levi, Eren is a little surprised to see the man himself clad in all black, strolling into the cafe after the morning rush. He is wary of the demon’s presence, considering the last time Levi had stepped into  _ Sticks and Scones _ , he had lit an employee on fire. The man saunters up to the counter with his signature half-bored expression resting naturally on his features. 

“What do you want?” Eren asks defensively, not even bothering to greet the man. 

“Wow, brat. Is that any way to talk to a customer? I’m surprised you even work in a place like this considering you have terrible people skills and a shit attitude,” Levi mocks. 

“ _ I  _ have terrible people skills? Last time you were in here you lit a person’s arm on fire!”

Levi smirks at Eren’s comment and orders a black coffee, to which Eren rolls his eyes. 

“Wow, black coffee. Never would have guessed.” 

He goes about pouring the beverage and ignoring the man, straddling the line between hoping to not piss Levi off too much to where he’ll hurt one of his friends again, but not wanting to give the man the benefit of finding amusement out of his anger. Despite his best efforts, when Eren turns around to hand Levi his coffee, his face is contorted in a smirk and mirth dances in his eyes. Eren sighs, knowing that he has to address the man’s presence eventually. 

“You’re probably here to ask me to do some menial and demeaning task again, aren’t you?” 

“Nothing gets past you, brat.” 

“You haven’t said even a single word to me in a week. Why are you suddenly showing up now?” 

“I didn’t realize you like my company that much,” the raven retorts. 

“It’s not that. It’d just be nice to have some consistency to this...whatever it is. You can’t just show up at my workplace demanding that I leave to help you do something you really could be doing by yourself,” Eren huffs. 

“Can’t I?” 

“No! For starters, I need to actually finish my shifts and make money to, ya know, buy food and pay rent.” 

“Whether or not you have a home makes no difference to me. You can still assist me perfectly fine without one.”

“Yeah, but if I starve to death, you’re kind of shit out of luck, aren’t you!” Eren’s temper sparks again. Something about Levi’s complete lack of decency most of the time makes Eren easily lose his well practiced control. The man opposite Eren ponders his words for a few moments, which only serves to annoy him even more. 

“Fine. I guess it would be more annoying having to deal with you dying than dealing with you alive.” With that, the man strides over to one of the tables in the corner of the cafe, sinking back into the shadows that cover the chair. Eren shudders a little with how easy he is able to conceal himself in darkness. 

“You aren’t just going to stay here until my shift ends?” Eren is really hoping Levi answers in the negative. 

“Nothing gets past you, brat.” 

Eren can feel a headache coming on. It was going to be another long day for him. 

_____________________________________________________________________________

Eren does his best to keep an eye on Levi while completing his workday, a task which becomes increasingly difficult as the lunch rush brings in a horde of hungry, coffee-deprived people attired in business ware, and in need of a jolt of caffeine. He briefly glances up and notices Hange making her way over to talk with him, but nothing terrible seems to come out of the exchange. 

After completing his shift, Eren walks gingerly over to Levi and notices his body is directly facing the counter where he had been preparing drinks. The thought of Levi watching him for hours makes him shudder a bit. He still can’t get past how instantaneously creepy the demon can become.

“Took you long enough,” Levi drawls impudently as Eren walks over to his half-hidden table. 

“I can’t just choose how long my shifts are. You could have just gone somewhere else if you were bored.” 

“Whatever, brat.” Levi stands and strides past Eren, leaving the boy to follow behind in his footsteps. Once outside, Levi reaches over to grab onto him, but the boy stumbles out of his grasp. 

“No, no, no! We are not doing that weird woosh thing you do where you just appear anywhere.” 

“Woosh thing, really? You could at least try and dial down your idiocy sometimes.” 

“It’s not you who ends up keeled over and throwing up on the sidewalk when we travel that way. Can’t we just steal a car again?” 

“Are you advocating theft?” Levi answers in mock surprise.

“I’m advocating that the contents of my stomach stay in my stomach,” Eren snarks back. 

“That’s gross, brat,” Levi deadpans.

Eren has to scramble after Levi as he unexpectedly turns and starts making his way up the street. He passes at least 20 different vehicles before coming to a black sports car. Eren goes to tug on the handle to the passenger’s seat, but the car is tightly locked. 

“You’re getting really predictable with your stylistic preferences, and this car is locked,” Eren says matter-of-factly. Levi gives him an unimpressed look complete with one raised eyebrow, opens the door to the car, and steps in. Eren is left momentarily speechless, and when he tries the handle again, the car door opens. He audibly huffs as he steps inside. 

As Eren gets into the car, he recalls the plan he formulated a week ago to bring the good out in Levi. ‘Plan’ is really a generous term for what Eren has in mind because he still has no clue as to what would move Levi to become a better person. Wracking his brain as Levi starts the engine, Eren figures he’ll have to begin with showing the demon the importance of helping others, as cliche as it sounds. He reckons Levi has a very low bar to start off with, and will probably need to begin from scratch when it comes to the concept of good deeds and human decency. As Eren watches the scenery fly by out the window, he notices a group of people attempting to haul heavy-looking boxes into a building. Without thinking, he screams at Levi to stop the car. Startled, the raven slams on the brakes. 

When the vehicle comes to a complete stop, Eren jumps out and jogs up to the building. He can feel Levi’s intense stare on his back.  _ Perfect, _ Eren thinks. He can help the people carry their boxes into the building, demonstrate an act of kindness to the demon, and open Levi’s eyes to the joy of helping others. 

“Hi there! I noticed you guys were carrying some pretty heavy-looking boxes. Mind if I help?” Eren asks cheerfully, already reaching for a box before anyone in the group can reply. 

“What the hell! Don’t touch my shit. This is private property, so beat it, kid,” a rather irate looking man bellows harshly. Eren had not expected his plan to fail so miserably so quickly. The death stare the man gives him leaves no room for question, and Eren swiftly makes his way back to the car, glancing over his shoulder briefly to ensure the man isn’t angry enough to follow him. He gets in silently. Levi raises his eyebrows and stares at Eren for a moment before starting the car and driving off again. Eren is determined not to give up yet. 

His next attempts at demonstrating human decency to Levi go, if possible, even poorer than the first. Eren tries to help a man walking multiple dogs in Sina Park, but a doberman ends up getting loose and chasing him down the sidewalk. When he notices a woman carrying workout equipment from a gym, he offers a hand but ends up dropping and breaking a piece, much to her dismay. Levi stays silent each time Eren screams for him to stop the car, jumps out to help someone, and returns defeated. He merely observes Eren with humored disinterest, not bothering to try and stop the boy’s increasingly erratic behavior. By the third defeat, however, Levi cannot stay silent any longer. 

“What the fuck are you doing, brat?” Levi mocks. 

Eren just huffs and tells the demon to continue driving. Levi gives him a wry smile and starts the car again. 

“You know, you don’t have to prove to me that you’re good or something. I really couldn’t care less if you help old ladies cross the street or set buildings on fire in your free time.” 

“That’s not it,” Eren sulks. Before Levi can answer, a loud grumbling fills the space, and Eren moans. He had forgotten that he hadn’t eaten lunch, and he was suddenly feeling the effects of his skipped meal. 

“I’m absolutely starving. Can we stop somewhere for a snack?” he whines. 

“A snack? What are you, five?” 

Eren groans again, loud and dramatic to which Levi rolls his eyes and grumbles a few barely audible words about useless humans. 

“Fine, if it will get you to shut up,” the raven says as he pulls off the road and into the drive-through of a McDonald’s. 

“Ah, bless!” Eren exclaims. “Okay, I’ll take a double cheeseburger, a medium coke, and a small thing of fries. I think I have a few dollars on me.” 

“For fuck’s sake! Are you getting a snack or feeding a small village?” 

“I didn’t have time for lunch at work,” Eren groans as Levi drives up to the speaker to place the order. He is practically dancing in his seat in anticipation of the greasy snack. 

“I’ll have one small black coffee, and that’s it,” the raven says before driving up to the window. He practically has to restrain Eren in his seat when the boy realizes Levi didn’t order any of the food he requested, which seems to disturb the cashier greatly as she sees the two grappling in their seats when Levi pulls up. 

“What the fuck!” Eren bellows as Levi drives away, coffee in hand. “Why are you such a dick all the time?” His wailing causes Levi to hiss. 

“Fucking Hell, brat. You could wake the dead. Here,” he says, tossing a brown bag at Eren that was resting in the cupholder. When Eren opens it, he sees a large chocolate muffin from  _ Sticks and Scones,  _ and his mood instantly improves.

“Your creepy boss gave it to me while you were working.” 

“Ah! Chocolate is my favorite,” Eren declares giddily, forgetting all about the McDonald’s incident. 

“Of course it is,” Levi scoffs. “Leave it to you to pick the most childish flavor of baked goods.” 

“Well, what’s  _ your  _ favorite flavor?” Eren retorts in his snootiest tone. 

“I don’t eat human food. Most of it is disgusting.”

“But if you had to choose?”

“I wouldn’t.”

“But if you had to?” 

Levi sighs loudly, realizing Eren is not going to drop the muffin conversation. “Lemon poppyseed, I guess.”

“Jesus! That’s the grossest flavor you could possibly choose. Who the hell wants tiny seeds and citrus in their muffins?” 

“Just shut up and eat already, brat,” Levi scoffs. 

_____________________________________________________________________________

Eren noshes on his muffin in content silence as Levi drives them a little ways out of town to the expensive suburbs of Shiganshina that feature gated mansions, country clubs, and sports cars dotting the roads. As Eren is licking the chocolate off of his fingers, the pair pull up to a three-story dwelling complete with a spitting fountain and three convertibles out front. Eren gapes at all the wealth surrounding him. 

“Geez! You’re not going to ask me to rob anyone, are you?” 

“No, the whole point is to give  _ others _ the chance to make wrong decisions that bind their souls to Hell, not you.” 

“Well, what do you want me to do then?”

“Be the distraction.” 

“Distraction! Why do  _ I  _ have to be the distraction?”

“Because I have no faith in your abilities,” Levi scoffs, stepping out of the vehicle. Eren scrambles out after him. 

“What am I supposed to say!?” 

“Dunno, brat. You’ll think of something.” And with this, Levi vanishes into thin air, leaving Eren to grumble about how the demon only exists to make his life miserable. 

Levi reappears in a study in the topmost part of the house. In all honesty, he probably didn’t need Eren’s help with this task, but the opportunity to freak the kid out by showing up at his workplace again was too good to pass up. Plus, Levi still finds Eren to be one of the more intriguing humans he has come across, even if he is annoying as Hell. 

Levi makes his way around the extravagant mahogany desk in the center of the room to a painting of a horse.  _ Why do rich people always have paintings of horses? _ he ponders. He removes the rather unoriginal work from the wall to reveal a large safe. Getting the code shouldn’t be too difficult. From somewhere downstairs, he hears Eren wailing dramatically.  _ Guess the brat found his cover story _ . He has to suppress a scoff when he hears some of the female staff fawning over the “poor boy with the beautiful emerald eyes” in the living room. It doesn't take him long to crack the safe’s code, and as he is getting ready to exit, he decides to leave via the stairwell to get a glimpse of the uproar Eren has seemed to cause in the mostly empty house. He makes his way to the landing and leans against the handrail overlooking the front room, bearing witness to the five maids that are crowding around Eren, taking turns hugging him as he wipes fakes tears from his eyes. 

When Eren looks up and sees Levi observing the scene, he mouths for help behind the back of a maid who is hugging him tightly. Levi just sneers and picks himself up off of the handrail, lazily sauntering down the remaining stairs as the maids gush over Eren. He sees the boy give him the middle finger as he slips past the living room and towards the back door. Levi briefly contemplates leaving Eren there once he has made his way out but figures he can only push the boy so far in one day. After all, he had already denied him his McDonald’s. Levi goes to lean against the car, waiting for Eren. The boy stumbles out minutes later, a few hastily wiped off smudges of lipstick still smearing his face. Levi smirks. 

“You just left me in there!” Eren whines. 

“You seemed preoccupied.” 

“Oh, my god! Please tell me you at least got whatever we came here for.” 

“I did,” Levi responds nonchalantly. 

“What did you want with these rich people, anyways?”

“The code to a safe.”

“What? Why?”

“You really want to know?”

“Ugh, no. I probably don’t.” Eren groans. 

“What did you say to get all the female staff to come drool over you?” Levi seems genuinely curious. 

“Oh, just that I lost my cat. They didn’t really buy it until I started the whole fake-crying thing.”

“That you lost your cat. Really, brat?” Levi scoffs, unimpressed. 

“What, was I supposed to say! You didn’t give me any time to prepare. Can we just get out of here now? It’s getting dark.” 

Rather than reply, Levi reaches out his hand. Eren gorans. 

“Can’t we just take the car?”

“It’ll take all fucking week to get back accross town. You live in a shit neighborhood.” 

“It’s not that bad,” Eren grumbles. He mutters a few more comments about Levi existing to ruin his days before stepping up and taking the man’s hand. The familiar, cold sensation tingles from Eren’s fingertips, to his arm, and down his side. His vision goes black, and the tugging sensation takes over his whole body. 

They’re back in his apartment within seconds, and although Eren manages to stay on his feet this time, he cannot stop the wave of nausea that forces him to run to the bathroom. From behind the closed door, he can hear voices and movement in the apartment. Mikasa and Armin must be home. When he finally feels well enough to venture out, he knows Levi will no longer be in his room, so instead he ventures to the kitchen, where he is greeted by Armin, Mikasa, and Reiner. 

_____________________________________________________________________________

Half an hour later, Eren is back on the streets, this time with Reiner. The pair head to a grocery store to pick up some vegetables while Mikasa and Armin begin the cooking. The two walk in content silence for a few minutes before Reiner speaks up. 

“Hey, man. Are you doing okay? Mikasa has been a little worried about you lately. She thinks you’ve been more distracted than usual. Her words, not mine.” 

“Oh, yeah. I’m fine. I think I’m just coming down with a cold or something. I’ve been feeling a little off lately,” Eren fibs, thankful that neither Mikasa nor Armin, who have known Eren for years, are around to pick up on his lie. 

“Okay. Well, if you ever need to talk to anyone who isn’t Kasa or Armin, I’m always here for you,” Reiner offers politely. 

It is times like this that Eren is thankful his sister is dating a decent guy. He’s always gotten along with Reiner since they first met their sophomore year of college. He gradually became close with Reiner’s two best friends and current roommates, Bertholdt and Annie, during their time in college as well. The six still go out together for drinks or dinner often. 

Eren and Reiner make their way into the grocery store, and Eren is quickly distracted by the rows of food that call to him now that his stomach has settled down again. Reiner goes off to inspect some lettuce while Eren ventures to the coffee aisle to find a new type of bean to try. He is so engrossed by a Colombian Castillo, that he doesn’t even realize he is running into someone before it is too late. 

“Oh, geez. I’m sorry! I wasn’t paying attention.” Eren says down to a rather short, petite girl with dazzling blues eyes and an almost ethereal glow to her. The beautiful girl’s companion at her side is a little more rough around the edges with a visible scowl contorting her features, but she too holds a sort of enchanting glow to her. 

“Are you Eren Jaeger?” the small girl inquires. 

“Ye...yes.” 

Eren is startled. He’s fairly certain he has never met either of the girls that now stand in front of him.

“Oh, good! We need to talk to you,” she answers in relief. “If you could please come with us.” 

“What? I’m sorry. I don’t know you.” Eren frowns and the corners of his eyes crinkle with worry. 

“Good going, Tory. You freaked the kid out,” the rougher looking girl says to her companion. 

“Oh! I’m so sorry! I should explain myself,” the dainty girl responds politely, looking a little embarrassed by her blunder. 

“We’re here to talk to you about the demon who is corrupting your soul. The one you are forcefully bound to,” she says cheerily. 

Eren almost drops the coffee beans. 


	7. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren begins to question Levi's motivations. He puts himself in considerable danger trying to stop one of Levi's demonic acts. Unexpected visitors cause Levi to become furious with Eren. Trigger Warnings: panic attack

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello all! This is officially the last chapter in the 'bonding arc.' Hooray! After this, we get into the real meat of the story. Sorry for the choppy chapter summary. A lot of things happen, and it was difficult to detail in a few sentences. This one is much heavier in angst than the last one, so beware. There is a panic attack towards the end. It's not very graphic, but if that is not your cup of tea, skip to the last paragraph to get the gist of what happens. Thanks for reading!

Somewhere in Hell, Levi menacingly trudges down the dark, dimly lit corridors. He has just spent the better part of four hours in a meeting detailing all recent demonic activity on Earth. To say he is irate and ready to set something, or someone, on fire is an understatement. He despises the fact that the standard soul reaping required of all demons has devolved into a tournament to see who can entice the most humans to commit unforgivable deeds that will ensure their souls end up in Hell. He has always believed in a hands off approach when it comes to God’s creation; he would much rather brood in Hell than wander Earth trying to find souls to entice. 

Until recently, Levi had barely traveled up to Earth unless there was a soul that needed to be reaped. He has always figured that facing the contempt of his fellow demons is favorable to spending extended time among the human populace. Until Eren came along. 

Levi has gone through much of his existence believing that all humans are cut from the same cloth. Some are good, some are bad. The really bad ones end up in Hell, while the really good ones get to spend an eternity in Heaven. Eren is different. He took Levi’s black and white theory of humanity and threw it out the window. Levi is a demonic creature of Hell. Yet even with this knowledge, Eren has the audacity to travel with him, to banter with him, to smile at him all while doing something as good as stepping in front of a gun to demand justice for a murdered man. Eren does not fit Levi’s cookie-cutter vision of mankind. Since the day he had brazenly rushed into the middle of a busy street to save a man as evil as Levi himself, Levi couldn't stay away from Earth. He hasn’t been surprised in so long. He is too curious to see how the boy will surprise him next.

As his thoughts dwell on Eren, Levi considers going up to Earth for a few hours to annoy him. He always finds amusement in the startled and worried expression that crosses Eren’s features whenever he comes around, only to be replaced by the boy’s brash snark and audacious cheekiness a few minutes later. 

Levi is shaken from his thoughts when he hears a deep voice calling his name. He turns to see Erwin striding towards him. 

“You certainly got out of there quickly,” the large man muses. 

“Can you fucking blame me? What a damn waste of time. If they kept records as well as they boasted about their demonic achievements, we wouldn’t have a backlog on filing.” 

“I noticed you didn’t say much,” Erwin notes cautiously. 

Levi’s eyes narrow instantly. He doesn’t like what the man is insinuating. Erwin immediately discerns the spike in hostility. 

“It’s just that, you’ve been spending much more time on Earth than you ever have in the past, yet you haven’t been doing anything that egregious.” 

“Not all of us think luring humans into shooting each other is all that productive, Erwin.  _ You _ should know as well as anyone that I am one of the most committed demons here,” Levi growls. 

“I know that, Levi. I’m not threatening you. I’m just reminding you that people notice, and they talk. Right now they’re talking about the human you’ve got bound to you.”

Levi’s hostility skyrockets. His voice drops to a low snarl.

“Don’t you fucking  _ dare _ bring Eren into this.” 

“I’m not. I’m just reminding you that while you may have some leeway as a high-level demon, it also means you constantly have a target on your back. There are plenty of demons here who would love to knock you down a few notches.” 

“What are you saying? That someone would use Eren to get to me?”

“You still don’t know who saved the boy’s life 18 years ago. Maybe that should tell you something, Levi.”

“I’m taking care of it, Erwin.”

“I know. Just be careful. I have a feeling both you and the boy are in danger.” 

_____________________________________________________________________________

Back on Earth, Eren is standing outside the grocery store with Historia and Ymir. Pretending that the two are old college friends he happened to bump into while shopping, Eren had managed to get Reiner to head home with the rest of the dinner ingredients without him. He is tense, anxiously biting the bottom of his lip as he eyes the two girls. 

Historia is staring back at him with an encouraging smile gracing her delicate features. Ymir scowls. 

Eren can’t stop his voice coming out in a whisper. “Who are you two?” 

“I’m Historia, and this is Ymir. We’re both angels.”

“Angels?”

Although Eren has gotten quite used to the fact that Levi is a demon, he is still surprised to hear  these two girls are angels . He has gone through most of his time with the raven ignoring the malicious sides to his abilities, instead opting to view Levi as more human than he actually is. Eren now realizes that is a mistake. 

“What do you want with me?” 

His voice is timid and weak. He can’t muster a single ounce of the bold gusto he normally has when speaking to strangers. 

“Oh, sweetie. We don’t want to hurt you! We just want to help you,” Historia coos soothingly,  acutely aware of the distress the boy is in . 

“Help me?”

“Yes, help you break your connection with that demon.” 

“Why? Levi has done nothing wrong to me.” 

As he says it, Eren knows it isn’t true. He vividly remembers Levi setting Sasha on fire, filling his head with wailing from hell, forcing him to do things he didn’t want to do. Yet when the angel smiles sweetly at him as she rebukes his relationship with Levi, he can’t help but feel defensive.

“Eren, you  _ do _ understand what your connection with the demon means, right?”

“Well… I mean… he just… said that I didn’t do something, and now my soul is bound to him. I… uh… he didn’t really explain. He’s bad at explaining things most of the time….”

  
  


As Historia watches the boy fumble over his words and worriedly tug at the bottom of his shirt, she can’t help but feel overwhelmingly responsible for Eren’s current condition. When she realizes that Eren has no idea why he is bound to Levi, no idea that he was supposed to die 18 years ago, she can’t help but feel unbearable amounts of pity for the poor boy. She cannot bring herself to tell him the truth. Historia’s eyes fill with pity, and Eren hates it. He much prefers Ymir’s harsher, colder stare.

“Eren, it’s very dangerous that your soul is bound to him. Both for you and for the balance.”

“The balance?”

“Yes. The balance between Heaven and Hell. Each respective realm attains power from the number of souls that reside in them. That’s why demons frequently encourage humans to commit unforgivable acts, while angels encourage humans to commit virtuous acts. But there is a balance between each side; an unspoken agreement between angels and demons that each side only encourages so much. Something that tips this balance, no matter how small, could lead to a war between Heaven and Hell. Something like a demon having a human companion.” 

“But… but Levi and I have barely been doing anything. What we’ve been doing hasn’t even been that bad. He hasn’t asked me to hurt anyone, or kill anyone, or….” 

“Yeah, kid, but that doesn’t matter,” Ymir cuts in harshly. “As soon as the forces of Heaven catch on to the fact that a demon has a human companion, they’ll start accusing Hell of overstepping the line. What you have to understand is that most human souls don’t make it past a few months being bound to a demon. The fact that you’ve lasted for 18 years is enough to start a war.” 

“Eighteen years…” 

Eren’s face pales. Eighteen years ago he was six. He had murdered. Is that the reason why his soul is bound to Levi? Because he had murdered two people? But no, Levi said it was something he hadn’t done. What hadn’t he done 18 years ago? He was only a child. Unless Levi is lying. Eren doesn’t know anymore. 

“Eren, what we need to do is find a way to break the connection between you and the demon,” Historia says softly, drawing the boy’s attention back to her. 

“Find a way… you don’t know how to?” 

“Well… not quite. All previous attempts to break the bond between a human and a demon have failed so miserably that the human has died every time, and the only other way for a human’s soul to be released is if the demon kills him or her.” 

“Kill me… Levi wouldn’t… I don’t think he’d….”

But does he even really know what Levi would do? He has already kept so much information from Eren. 

“It’s not just that. The relationship is physically malignant for you. Have you felt increasingly sick or tired lately? That is most likely due to the connection.” 

Eren has been feeling sick lately. His headaches and nausea have gotten worse. His nightmares have come back. He is constantly tired, jumpy…. 

“Plus,” Historia continues, “the longer your soul is bound to a demon, the more likely it will be judged to reside eternally in Hell once you do eventually die.” 

Eren's face is ghostly, and his lips are drained of color. He graphically recalls the cavernous room. The faceless judge. The wailing agony. 

“What do I do?” His voice is barely audible.

“Eren, we want to help you. We’ll help find a way to break the connection without hurting you! We promise. We’ll stay on Earth until we find something,” Historia declares earnestly. 

Eren just nods. He can no longer speak.

“Until then, though, you should do your best to stay away from the demon. Avoid him if at all possible.”

_____________________________________________________________________________

Levi glances over at Eren in the passenger seat. He has been silent the entire car ride. His face is pale, and his teeth gnaw at his lower lip. His eyes are glazed over as if deeply lost in thought. He has not spared Levi one glance. Eren barely even acknowledged him when he had sauntered into  _ Sticks and Scones  _ to bother the boy. When his eyes had met Levi’s from across the large coffee shop, he immediately looked sick and briskly asked Hange for the rest of the day off. 

At first Levi is worried. What if something has happened to the kid? Had he been so sickly the other day? Had Eren mentioned that something was bothering him?

His worry quickly turns into annoyance when he realizes Eren is actively ignoring him. He can’t even bother to ask Levi where they’re going, or berate him for stealing another car. The boy’s intentional silence bothers him even more than his brazen sass. 

Finally, Levi’s irritation overtakes his concern. He huffs loudly. His eyes narrow as he grips the steering wheel until his knuckles turn white. 

“Okay, brat. Cut the bullshit. What’s wrong?” 

“Nothing’s wrong,” Eren mumbles. 

“Oh, so you’re just acting like a spoiled little brat for shits and giggles?”

“Fuck you,” Eren hisses venemously. “It’s not like you’ve said anything to  _ me _ . You haven’t even told me where we’re going.” 

“You never asked.”

“Well, I’m asking now.” 

“To a nightclub.”

“A nightclub? Levi, it’s one thirty in the afternoon.” 

“I can tell time, but thank you. We’re going to drop something off.” 

“What could we possibly be dropping off in the middle of the day to a place that doesn’t even open until eleven at night?” 

“You’ll just have to wait and see, won’t you.” 

“I’m assuming there’s a pretty damn good reason why you need me here for this.” 

Levi shifts slightly in his seat but stays silent.  He does not acknowledge Eren’s comment.

Eren huffs in annoyance and turns his body away from Levi, going back to watching the scenery flit by out the window. His conversation with Historia and Ymir weighs heavily on his mind. It has been three days now, and the pair have come to check up on him everyday. Despite valiant efforts searching the libraries of Heaven, they have made no progress in learning how to break his connection with Levi in a way that won’t result in his death. Eren doesn’t even know if he wants them to. He is not sure if he wants it to end yet. 

_____________________________________________________________________________

  
  


Levi pulls up to a dark building residing in Shiganshina’s entertainment district. The outside of the building is dingy, and the parking lot is littered with broken glass. A dilapidated, silver sign spelling out  _ LUX  _ clings to the front of the structure providing the only contrast to the dark exterior. The few cars parked outside the entrance are adorned with bumps and scrapes masked poorly by re-applied coats of paint, as though the owners are trying to make the vehicles appear newer and more expensive than they actually are. 

Levi gracefully steps out of the car and slams the door. Eren scrambles out after him. The raven makes his way to the trunk of the car and pulls out a black backpack. He barely acknowledges Eren as he swings one strap around his shoulder and turns towards the entrance of the building. 

  
  


Eren is suddenly frightened. Levi has not mentioned once what they are doing outside of a dilapidated, sketchy looking nightclub. He hasn’t clued Eren in on what he wants him to do either. This isn’t like him. Levi has always answered Eren’s questions, no matter how annoyed he seems by them. Well, almost all of Eren’s questions. 

“Wait. Levi, wait! What are we doing here?” 

Levi notes the desperation in Eren’s voice, and he feels a pang of guilt in his gut. He makes an effort to soften his features and lighten his voice ever so slightly. 

“We’re here to make a transaction.” 

“A transaction?” 

“Yes. A transaction.”

“Wh...What?”

“A lot of the lower level members of the Taishu-Kai Cartel work the nightclubs selling pot and ritalin to boozed out college kids with too much money in their pockets. The owner of this charming establishment happens to be one of them, but he’s been looking to up his game recently. He wants to find a dealer who can sell him acid and molly. I may have informed him a while back that I could get him in contact with someone. Dumbass wants a sample of the product first, though. As if he has any bargaining power in this.” 

Eren’s face pales, and his pulse quickens. He doesn’t want to do this. Out of all the things Levi has asked him to do, he truly does not want to do this one. He doesn’t care if he’ll be handing over the drugs personally, or if he’ll just be following behind Levi like a scared puppy. He wants no part in supplying 20-year-olds with psychoactive drugs. 

“Levi, I don’t want to do this,” Eren whispers, barely audible. 

Levi studies Eren. That pang of guilt flashes through him again, and he almost doesn’t want to make Eren do this either, even if the boy is just accompanying him in. Levi knows Eren has values he holds dearly, a set of morals he sticks to. This must be crossing all of them. Still, he can only sigh. 

“Come on, brat. This won’t take long. I’ll take you out for McDonald’s after.” Levi’s voice is barely above Eren’s as he grabs the boy gently by the arm and steers him to the entrance of the drab, dingy building. 

_____________________________________________________________________________

If Eren Yeager is anything, it’s stubborn. He won’t back down from a fight, even if he knows he’ll lose. He won’t back off from a challenge, even if he knows his efforts are futile. And he won’t help sell drugs to low level cartel members looking to move up in the world, even if he knows it could mean certain death. But as he is running through the grungy, dimly lit halls of  _ LUX _ , bullets whizzing past his head, Levi nowhere to be found, all he can think is:  _ Oh fuck. Oh dear fuck _ . 

After Levi had practically dragged Eren into the club, they had been escorted to the back to meet with a rather overweight, dirty looking man intensely enveloped in cheap cologne. There were at least fifteen other similarly dressed thugs cramped into the small room. Eren could see Levi’s eyes twitch in annoyance at the confined, filthy space, but the raven still managed to pull off his most roguish-looking smile as he greeted the heavy-set man. Eren had tuned out most of the conversation after that, getting lost in his own stormy thoughts. He wanted to leave and never come back to this club, never come back to this part of the city even. Still, he knew he wouldn’t be able to forgive himself if he just stood meekly at Levi’s side doing nothing. 

Eren isn't sure whether the plan came to him in a moment of brilliant revelation or boorish pigheadedness. As Levi was handing over the black backpack in exchange for a large envelope stuffed with cash, Eren knew he would have to do something fast to stop the proceedings. The best scheme his brain could produce in a moment’s notice was to steal the backpack out of Levi’s hands and bolt for the exit. That is exactly what he does. 

As Eren is running for his life away from the ruffians waving guns and shooting bullets past his head, he realizes that this is perhaps the stupidest thing he has ever done. Stupider than attempting to walk a violent doberman in the park or even confronting the corrupt Chief of Police. He vaguely wonders where Levi is. The raven hadn’t followed him out of the room. He had looked just as surprised as the Cartel members when Eren had grabbed the drugs and made a beeline for the exit. 

As the thugs are closing in behind him, shouting obscenities, Eren feels a sharp burst of rage erupt in his chest. He is angry at the raven for getting him into this situation, for not getting him out of it when he decided to do something truly stupid. A burst of adrenaline shoots through his legs when he thinks of the reprimanding he is going to give the demon,  _ if _ he makes it out of this alive. 

Suddenly, the wide front doors come into view. It’s been like running through a maze trying to get from the small back room to the large front entrance, but he’s finally managed it. His lungs are practically about to burst with the gulps of air he is forcing down them. Suddenly, Eren feels himself falling over. His shoelaces have managed to come undone at a time like this, and he trips over them in his haste to get the hell out of the building. As Eren crashes to the floor, he has a distinct feeling that this is the end for him. Twenty-four years of life all to be thrown away in a disgusting, grimy nightclub in the middle of the afternoon. 

As he is about to gracelessly face plant into the floor, Eren feels slender, strong arms snake around his waist. He is met with the familiar frigid sensation that now pools in his gut. His body is helplessly tossed around like a rag doll just as his vision goes black. . 

_____________________________________________________________________________

Eren collapses to his knees in the center of his small living room. He is still clutching the black backpack in his trembling arms. Levi is standing over him with a murderous gaze. 

“What the  _ fuck  _ was that, brat!”

“Me? What about you? You just stood around waiting for me to get shot!” 

“What was I supposed to do!? Hell doesn’t exactly advocate demons appearing and disappearing into and out of existence in front of humans whenever they feel like it! Need I remind you that  _ I _ was also in a confined space surrounded by armed criminals. They tried to shoot me too! What kind of fucking idiot shows up to a drug deal and tries to steal the drugs?” 

Eren is leering at the demon, breathing heavily as adrenaline still races through his body. Suddenly, he can’t help himself. He bursts out laughing. He is laughing so hard that little tears form at the edges of his crinkled eyes, and his stomach begins to ache. He manages to push himself onto the sofa before doubling over in continuous fits of laughter, arms wrapping around his stomach. When he looks up, he sees Levi sitting on the armrest, gazing at him and chuckling lightly with a small smile gracing his lips. Eren has to gasp in deep breaths to get himself to stop his giggling fit. Finally, when he has enough control over his body, he jumps up. 

“I can’t believe you did that, brat.”

“Really, because it sounds exactly like something I would do.” Levi snorts at Eren’s comment. 

“I’ll go make us some coffee,” Eren says, wiping the tears from his eyes.

“You drink way too much coffee.”

“Factually incorrect.”

“You know there are better drinks than coffee out there. You could have tea and at least get some hydration out of it.”

“See, now that just sounds like your opinion, but I think Armin has some Earl Gray stashed in one of our cabinets if you’d really prefer tea.”

“Tea is better than coffee.”

“Then why do you always order coffee at  _ Sticks and Scones? _ ”

“It’s a coffee shop, isn’t it.” 

Eren rolls his eyes at Levi’s sarcastic remark and heads to the kitchen to start on their drinks. Now that they’ve both calmed down and are in better moods, he thinks it is the perfect opportunity to question the demon while Armin and Mikasa are still away. He’s hoping to get some answers out of Levi, at least so he can wrap his head around all the things Historia and Ymir have told him. 

As Eren walks back with both drinks in hand, a light knock sounds on the door. Levi immediately gets up from his resting position on the end of the sofa. 

“Don’t worry. It’s probably just a neighbor. I’ll get rid of them.” Eren utters hurriedly. He does not want Levi to leave yet. He needs answers. 

When he opens the door, Eren sees Historia and Ymir dressed casually to blend in with their surroundings. Historia in a short denim skirt, pink tank top, white, long-sleeve cardigan, and white flip flops. Ymir in black skinny jeans, dark combat boots, and a black  _ Nirvana _ T-shirt. Eren begins to greet them but instantly feels the temperature in the apartment drop. He turns to Levi, but the man is unlike he has ever seen him before. He is exuding a dark aura that suppresses the space and makes the air in the room feel stifling. He reaches out his hand to grab Eren by the wrist and pull him further into the apartment behind him. Eren glances around Levi’s shoulder to see Ymir stepping around Historia, using her body to shield the smaller girl. She too is emitting a threatening aura, but hers is radiating a blinding white light as opposed to Levi’s deep black one. Ymir and Levi stare each other down. His grip on Eren’s wrist is so tight that Eren is in pain. 

“Ow, Levi. You’re hurting me.” 

The raven glances over his shoulder, startled and drops Eren’s arm. His eyes soften slightly when he takes in the pained expression on the boy’s face, but he immediately goes back to staring daggers at the two women in front of him when he turns his head back. 

“Eren, get away from him. He’s dangerous,” Ymir growls. 

“Eren…” Levi whispers, realizing the taller angel used the boy’s name “You three know each other...”

Levi quickly grasps that Eren must have contact with these angels. Judging by the fact that they are on a first name basis and casually showing up to his apartment in the middle of the day, they’ve probably known each other a while. His aura becomes darker and more threatening. He radiates anger. If Eren is in contact with angels, that means he is trying to find a way to break their bond. Levi can feel himself filling with rage. How  _ dare  _ Eren consort with such abominable creatures. If there is anything Levi hates most in the universe, it’s angels. 

Eren immediately senses Levi’s fury. He flinches slightly at the icy, black aura the demon is letting off. 

“Levi, I…”

“You better think real carefully before opening your mouth, Eren,” Levi cuts him off. 

“Don’t you dare threaten him,” Historia barks, stomping to Ymir’s side. “You have no right to even speak to him! You couldn’t even be bothered to explain to him why he’s bound to you! You’re despicable.”

“Oh,  _ I’m _ despicable? Who the fuck do you think saved him from the to-die list? It certainly wasn’t one of the demons charged by  _ your  _ God to reap souls for all eternity.” 

“No angel would knowingly bind an angel to a demon!”

“Then who the Hell would save his life!?”

“To-die list,” Eren whispers, and the three creatures turn to him suddenly as if just remembering he is still in the room. 

“Eren…,” Historia begins, but Ymir interrupts her. 

“Didn’t you ever think to ask this filthy demon why you’re connected to him, Eren? You were supposed to die 18 years ago, but someone saved your life and automatically bound you to the demon who was supposed to reap your soul,” she snarls. 

Eren feels the blood drain from his face. Images of 18 years ago flood his head. His legs begin to shake, and he can’t keep himself up. He sinks to his knees. The breath is knocked from his lungs as he recalls the knives, and the blood, and the dead corpses strewn about. He feels like he is suffocating as his whole body begins to convulse. 

“Fuck, I think he’s having a panic attack,” Ymir shouts. “Don’t just fucking stand there. Do something, demon!”

“What do you propose _ I  _ do?” Levi hisses. 

“You’re connected to him! Surely you feel his emotions. Help calm him down,” Historia says desperately, running to Eren’s side. She kneels down with him and soothingly strokes his hair. 

Levi is stuck. He can feel the taller angel radiating hatred behind him, but in front of him Eren is on his knees with tears forming at the edges of his eyes. He stares at Levi with all of the hurt and desperation the demon is sure the world has to offer. But Levi can’t suppress the rage that is still flooding his body. He is furious that Eren didn’t tell him angels had made contact with him, that he would go behind Levi’s back to try and find a way to break their bond. He is also hurt. Hurt by the thought that Eren has truly hated him all this time. Hurt that the boy would associate with the creatures he hates most. 

Levi looks directly into Eren’s large, emerald eyes and snarls “ _ Fuck you _ ” before turning and disappearing from the room. He can see the tears at the corners of Eren’s eyes finally flow down his cheeks as he does. 


	8. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shit hits the fan. TW: Some torture

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully this chapter actually lives up to the summary "shit hits the fan." Sorry this update took a little while longer. I'm having a bit of writer's block. Next one should be out within a week.

It has been days since Levi abandoned Eren in the middle of his panic attack. Historia and Ymir had stayed with him the entire time, wiping tears from his cheeks, rubbing soothing circles in his back, and softly whispering words of encouragement. Eren appreciated their efforts, but it did nothing to ease the overwhelming feeling of emptiness he had watching Levi desert him without so much as a backward glance. 

Eren’s hurt quickly turns to anger. He is furious with Levi for withholding such vital information, and for having the audacity to be livid with him for keeping in contact with angels when Levi himself had kept so much from Eren. He makes no attempt to contact Levi, not that he would even know how. He spends his days brooding at  _ Sticks and Scones _ . Eren obsesses over the fact that he was supposed to have died 18 years ago. His nightmares of that event have returned more vivid and vicious than ever, and he often wakes up feeling more exhausted than when he went to bed. 

Unknownest to Eren, Levi comes up to Earth to check on him daily. He’ll walk by the windows of  _ Sticks and Scones  _ dozens of times in a day just to catch a glimpse of Eren working, but he makes no attempt to see the boy. The dark circles under Eren’s eyes and his twitchy demeanor suggest to Levi that he hasn’t been doing well. Still, Levi can’t bring himself to talk to the boy. He hasn’t felt guilty about anything in hundreds of years, but the weight of guilt he now feels in having left Eren in his time of need is crushing. 

_____________________________________________________________________________

On a particularly cool October day in the middle of the week, Reiner stops in at  _ Sticks and Scones _ . Eren is surprised to see the man. It is almost three in the afternoon, and he should be at work. But then, a pang of guilt flashes through Eren when he thinks about how distant he has been with all of his friends recently. He has barely acknowledged Mikasa and Armin’s presence in the last few days, opting to eat alone in his room and getting up as late as possible to go to work. He knows that Mikasa has discussed constantly with Reiner her worry over his change in attitude, but he has dodged all of the man’s attempts to talk with him. So he greets Reiner a little over enthusiastically to outweigh the feeling of guilt fluttering in his stomach. 

“Hey, Reiner! I’m surprised to see you here at this time of day. Aren’t you supposed to be at work?” 

“Usually I would be, but I took part of the day off.”

“And you decided to see me on your half-day off? I’m flattered,” Eren teases.

“Actually, yes. There’s something important I want to talk to you about.” 

“Oh.” Eren is startled by the man’s earnest demeanor. “Well, I only have a few minutes left in my shift. Do you want to head home with me after I get off?”

“Sure, it would probably be better if we talk at the apartment anyway.” 

Eren finishes the rest of his workday with newfound curiosity. Reiner is usually a stoic-looking man, but Eren has never seen him this serious before. He wonders what Reiner could possibly want to talk about. 

_____________________________________________________________________________

Eren walks next to Reiner with his hands shoved in the pockets of his jacket. He really should have worn something warmer than a light zip-up to work. The days are quickly becoming frigid. He can tell winter is right around the corner. The pair chat idly about the weather and happenings in their respective workplaces. Neither broach the more serious subject of what Reiner came to the coffee shop to talk to Eren about. It doesn’t take long for them to reach the apartment complex, and the two trudge up the stairs together in silence. 

Once inside, Eren flings his jacket onto the back of the sofa and slips out of his shoes. He turns to see Reiner still in his coat, standing awkwardly by the door. 

“Are you okay, man? You seem a bit tense.” 

“Oh, yeah. To be honest, I am a little nervous. What I want to talk about is really important to me.” 

“Oh, what is it?” 

“Listen, Eren. I don’t think I’ve ever really told you, or Armin for that matter, how much I appreciate your guys’ friendship. How much I appreciate your support of my relationship with Mikasa. The thing is, I really love her. I’ve had four years to think about it, and I know what we have is special. She’s special, and I…” 

Reiner pauses, drawing in a deep breath. Eren waits with rapt attention. Could Reiner really be doing what Eren thinks he’s doing?

“…I really want to marry her, and I would like your blessing,” he finishes quietly. Eren breaks out in a dazzling grin. His face lights up as a bubbly laugh escapes his throat. 

“Holy, shit! Of course! You’re practically like family already.” 

“Oh, good. I didn’t really think you’d say no, but I was still sweating bullets the entire time. Sorry to leave you in suspense,” Reiner chuckles bashfully. 

Eren can’t help himself. Even though he knows the large man is not a huge fan of hugging, he still runs forward. Reiner, realizing what Eren is doing, doesn't make any attempt to stop him. As Eren closes in and throws his arms around the large man, he feels an odd pinching sensation in his stomach. It is unlike anything he has ever felt before. When he pulls away from Reiner, he gets the distinct feeling that his shirt is rapidly becoming wet. Eren observes Reiner’s face and notices the man’s eyes seem to have gotten darker. The excited light that was in them a few moments before has disappeared.

“Really  _ sorry  _ to leave you in suspense, Eren.” 

Reiner’s voice is different. It is malicious and cruel. Eren has never heard Reiner sound like this before. His brain feels muddled. Everything around him appears hazy. When Eren looks down, he sees a large kitchen knife jutting out of his stomach. Time slows for Eren. Hearing a small gasp, he glances back to see Mikasa and Armin frozen in place by the hallway that leads to the living room. Looks of shock and horror are etched into their faces. Eren briefly wonders what they are both doing home so early. 

He is suddenly filled to the brim with a blazing emotion: rage. Burning rage tinged with slight amounts of fear. However, this fury is not his own. The air in the apartment has become stifling. When Eren looks back to Reiner, he sees Levi instead. His pupils are blown. Blackness envelops the usual blue-grey of his irises. The vitriolic aura the demon had when meeting Historia and Ymir can’t even compare to the menacing darkness he exudes now. Eren realizes that, for the first time, he is connected to the demon’s emotions. He distinctly feels the burning fury wracking Levi’s body. The thought of being able to sense Levi’s emotions brings a small smile to his lips as he crumbles to the ground, no longer able to hold himself up. The initial shock of the injury has subsided. All he can feel is a breathtaking pain that pools in his gut. He notices Armin, Mikasa, and Levi all rush to him at the same time before his vision becomes spotty.

The three make it to Eren and Reiner at roughly the same time, but Levi is quicker to act. He laces one arm around Eren’s two roommates and grabs his companion and the hulking man that just stabbed him with his other hand. Without a second thought, he whisks the five of them off to Hell. 

_____________________________________________________________________________

The four humans crumble to the floor at Levi’s feet when they reappear in Hell. The demon has brought them to a dark back room that is bitterly cold and splashed with what appears to be blood in various stages of drying. Levi doesn’t pay any attention to the three smaller life forms collapsed before him. He turns to the muscled blond man already in the process of scrambling up, not taken by surprise nearly as much as the others dazed on the ground. Levi grabs him by his hair and drags him to the nearest wall, throwing the large man up against it. The back of his head hits the black stone with a sharp thud that reverberates throughout the room. The demon snaps his fingers, and chains tumble instantly from the ceiling. He deftly pulls the man’s wrists into the cuffs and secures him to the wall. 

Levi wastes no time once the man is restrained. His rage overcomes him. He gives no thought to questioning Reiner. All he wants is pain. He begins furiously punching him in the gut and kicking him in the ribs nonstop until he hears a sharp crack. An adept punch to the face breaks the blond’s nose. Blood spurts out. The hulking man grins maliciously at Levi, blood pooling in his mouth and coating his teeth. This serves to enrage the demon more. He takes one of Reiner’s chained arms and violently twists it at an unnatural angle. A resounding snap echoes throughout the space, and Reiner wails in agony. Levi pauses to admire his work. 

Reiner hangs limply in the chains, gasping for breath in labored puffs. “You know, he’s going to die if you just leave him there,” he manages to sneer, gesturing with his head towards Eren’s crumpled form. 

“Are you really so thoughtless that you’d leave him there to die just to beat the shit out of me?” 

Levi seethes. He knows Reiner is correct. He cannot heal Eren, and keeping him in Hell for too long will only kill the boy faster. Eren needs proper medical attention, quickly. With one final sharp punch to Reiner’s gut, which causes the man to let out a weak groan, Levi turns and scoops Eren into his arms. He doesn’t bother to acknowledge the horrified expressions from the two other humans sprawled on the floor as he disappears. 

He reappears outside the hospital he and Eren had visited weeks prior. Levi drags the boy’s lifeless body inside. Staff immediately swarm the two when they notice Eren’s state. A gurney is rapidly produced, and Levi gently places Eren’s body onto it, swatting away any hands that endeavour to help. He attempts to accompany the medical team beyond the double doors Eren is rapidly being pushed through, but he is swiftly blocked by an authoritative-looking nurse. 

“Only hospital staff are allowed beyond this point.” 

“No! I  _ have  _ to be with him.” Levi desperately tries to push past him, but the sturdy man won’t budge without a fight. 

“Sir, the best thing you can do for that boy now is let the professionals do their job. He’ll most likely need surgery immediately. Anything that slows that process could mean life and death.” 

Levi staggers at the mention of life and death. Not once since he had fallen from Heaven had Levi wished that he was an angel again. After the fall, he had taken on his role of being a demon proudly, never regretting the actions that had banished him to serve eternally in Hell. But at this moment, as he watches Eren being wheeled away knowing there is nothing more he can do to save the boy’s life, Levi wishes he was an angel again, if just for a second. If he were an angel again, he could perform a miracle to save Eren’s life. What Levi wouldn’t give to be able to do that. 

Once Eren is out of sight, Levi turns on his heel and marches out of the hospital. He ignores the nurse demanding something. He doesn’t bother to pay attention to what. Levi violently flings the doors out of his way as he steps outside. After crossing the threshold, he blinks out of existence, traveling back to Hell.

_____________________________________________________________________________

When Levi returns to the dismal black room, he spots Erwin standing in the center, an exceedingly miffed expression resting on his chiseled features. On his left, Eren’s friends are huddled against the wall as far away from the blond demon as possible, shivering profusely. The girl appears to be attempting to block the small boy with her body. She shoots Levi a murderous glare when she sees him return. On Erwin’s right, Reiner is still chained to the wall, head resting limply over his chest which rises and falls steadily. He appears to have passed out. Levi notices a few fingernails missing from the boy’s blood-covered fingers. He smiles slightly knowing that Erwin took his work into his own hands during his absence. 

“Levi, would you care to explain what’s going on here?” 

Levi’s features contort in mock confusion. “I’m sure I don’t know what you mean.” 

He can never pass up an opportunity to fuck with Erwin, especially when his emotions are threatening to burst over Eren’s condition. He desperately needs a distraction.

“I didn’t realize it has become standard practice to abduct  _ living  _ humans from Earth and torture them.” 

“Oh, you mean that piece of shit. I was just coming back to finish the job.” Levi’s mocking tone is gone, replaced by a low growl as his pupils noticeably dilate and darken. 

“Don’t you fucking  _ dare _ touch him,” the girl’s voice interrupts, echoing throughout the room. She is quivering. “If anyone gets to kill him, it’s  _ me _ .” She is trying to appear strong and menacing, but tears crinkle at the corners of her eyes. 

“Oh, well look at you,” Levi sneers, turning his attention to Mikasa. “You have some fire in you after all.” 

“Levi!” Erwin interjects harshly. “Explain. Now.”

Levi shoots Erwin a menacing glower but knows he cannot refuse. 

“That worthless piece of human trash stabbed Eren in front of his little friends over there. I brought them all here and then took Eren to the hospital.”

Shock lines Erwin’s features. He is left momentarily speechless.

“He just walked up to Eren and stabbed him?”

“No!” Mikasa cries. Tears threaten to spill down her cheeks. “He’s my boyfriend. We’ve all known each other for  _ years _ .” She desperately clings onto Armin, burying her face in his long, blond hair to muffle the sobs that wrack her body.

“Levi, I think this is your connection. Whoever saved Eren has gotten humans involved to get closer to him. For a while it seems.” 

“Yeah, I got that.” 

“You need to take them back to Earth. They’ll all die here if we leave them much longer, and you can’t kill that boy yet, no matter how much you may want to. I’ll go cover for you. I’m sure someone has sensed human presences in Hell by now. I’ll meet you on Earth when I’m finished.” 

Levi is noticeably peeved by Erwin’s order not to kill Reiner, but he agrees anyway. 

“Okay, I’ll take them back to Eren’s apartment and wait for you there.” He turns to glance at the two shivering humans. “Get up you two. I’m taking you back.” 

Once Levi has a secure hold on Reiner’s collapsed form, he grabs onto Mikasa and Armin and blinks out of existence. 

_____________________________________________________________________________

The four return to the apartment, and Levi immediately perceives that something is off. The space is far too dark and far too quiet. All of his senses are on high alert as he throws Reiner’s limp body on the floor. Levi scans around, eyes naturally adjusting to the dark, but he can’t distinguish anything out of the ordinary. Suddenly, he senses movement. 

“Get behind me,” Levi barks at Mikasa and Armin right before a stinging sensation rips through his leg. A long spear is sticking out of his upper thigh. He briefly contemplates that whoever has stabbed him has terrible aim, and an odd choice of weapon. 

“Dickhead. Human weapons can’t kill me,” Levi sneers, but as he says it, he realizes something is off. His leg burns. He feels his energy being sapped. No normal weapon would cause such a reaction. Sure, getting stabbed in the leg would hurt like a bitch, but it wouldn’t leave him any worse for wear. This is different. 

“Shit,” Levi hisses. “You dipped the blade in Holy Water, didn’t you?” 

Although Levi can feel his strength being drained a bit, he is a powerful demon. A blade covered in partially dried Holy Water stabbed in a non-vital area is not enough to subdue him. That is when he realizes that the figure before him is not alone. A second blade slashes at Levi. The wielder is aiming for his heart, taking advantage of their towering position to arc the knife down as Levi crouches from the pain in his leg. His reflexes are sharp, however, and he is able to dodge the fatal blow. The knife plunges into his shoulder instead. 

Levi can feel immediately that this blade has been doused in Holy Water as well. His vision goes spotty, and he stumbles a bit. The strain of carrying multiple lifeforms to and from Hell numerous times in one day, in addition to having two Holy Water-coated weapons jutting out of his body, takes its toll on the demon. Levi can feel himself slipping into unconsciousness. He is vaguely aware of Eren’s two roommates screaming, though it seems more out of fear than pain. He fleetingly realizes that the two hooded strangers have hauled Reiner up and are carrying him out of the apartment. They make their getaway as Levi slips completely into unconsciousness.


End file.
